Please note: I am not a lawyer, and nothing in this post constitutes legal advice. This is my understanding of the legislation and the steps I have taken in my own business. You are responsible for your own compliance, and I would strongly recommend getting your terms and conditions reviewed by a legal professional who specialises in EU consumer law if you have any doubt about your specific situation.
A new legal requirement came into effect on 19 June 2026, and if you sell anything online to clients or customers in the European Union, it applies to you, even if your business is based in the UK.
It’s called the EU Right of Withdrawal, and while the underlying right has existed since 2014, what changed this year is the requirement for a digital withdrawal button – a clearly labelled way for customers to cancel a purchase online, as easily as they bought it. In this post, I’ll explain what it means, who it affects, and what I’ve done in my own business to get compliant, including the specific steps inside ThriveCart (affiliate link, as this is my checkout provider of choice). If you use a different checkout provider, such as Samcart or Kajabi, the principles still apply, but your implementation will be different and you should refer to their support documentation.
What is the EU Right of Withdrawal?
The EU Right of Withdrawal gives consumers in the EU the legal right to cancel any online purchase within 14 days, without giving a reason.
This isn’t new. That 14-day cooling-off period has been part of EU consumer law since 2014. What changed on 19 June 2026, under EU Directive 2023/2673, is how easily customers must be able to exercise that right. Previously, someone wanting to cancel often had to hunt for a PDF form, send an email, or navigate a confusing process. The new requirement closes that loophole: there must now be a clearly visible digital withdrawal button available throughout the 14-day window, with a two-step confirmation and an automatic email acknowledgement to the customer.
Does this affect me if I’m based in the UK?
Yes, if you sell to EU customers. What matters is where your customer is located, not where your business is based. A UK coach or service provider, selling a programme to someone in Germany, France, or Spain is in scope.
The only clear exception is if you sell exclusively to other businesses (B2B). The moment an individual consumer can buy from you online, the requirement applies, regardless of your business size.
So you need to ask yourself: do any of my customers buy as individuals rather than as a business? If the answer is yes, read on.
Who does it apply to?
More people than you’d think. The legislation covers:
- Online courses and digital products
- Memberships and subscription communities
- Coaching programmes and consulting packages sold online
- Physical products sold online
- Pretty much any digitally bookable service
If someone can buy it through your website, they need to be able to cancel it through your website too.
How does it apply to different types of products?
Online courses and digital products
This is where the most practical protection is available. If a customer expressly consents to immediate access at the point of purchase and acknowledges they are waiving their right of withdrawal, the 14-day window can be removed. This is what a waiver checkbox at checkout is designed to do – more on how to set this up in ThriveCart below.
Memberships and communities
Same principle. If someone joins your membership and immediately gets access to content, they can waive their right at checkout. Without that checkbox capturing their consent, you don’t have evidence they agreed, and the 14-day window remains open.
Coaching programmes and services
This is where it gets less straightforward. The law does have an exemption for services that have already been performed, but only if the client gave explicit consent to start immediately and acknowledged at the point of purchase that doing so would affect their withdrawal rights. A one-off session that’s already been delivered is fairly clear-cut. A longer programme where only part of the work has been done is murkier.
My honest advice here: the ThriveCart settings help, but they’re not a substitute for properly worded contracts. If you sell coaching packages or done-for-you services, get your terms reviewed by someone who knows EU consumer law.
Physical products
This applies too. If you sell physical goods to EU customers, the 14-day right applies from the moment the customer receives the item, not from the date of purchase. There’s no waiver option for physical goods – customers keep their 14 days regardless. What changes is that they now need to be able to exercise that right through a button on your website rather than by tracking down your email address.
What happens if you don’t comply?
If you don’t have any cancellation policy in place, the cooling-off period automatically extends from 14 days to 14 months. That means any EU customer could request a full refund for more than a year after buying.
Non-compliance can also lead to formal warnings, legal costs, and fines. And there is no grace period – the deadline was 19 June 2026.
What does full compliance actually require?
ThriveCart handles part of this, but not all of it. Here’s the full picture:
1. A cancellation policy on your website – clearly visible, covering the cooling-off period, what customers can cancel, and how. This needs to be easy to find, not buried in a long document.
2. A withdrawal button – available to customers throughout their 14-day window so they can cancel without having to contact you directly. ThriveCart handles this in the Customer Hub.
3. Updated terms and conditions – your T&Cs need to align with the directive. ThriveCart’s settings don’t update your legal documents for you.
4. A waiver checkbox at checkout – for digital products, this captures the customer’s consent to immediate access and documents that they acknowledged the effect on their withdrawal right.
What I’ve done in my own business
Here’s what I’ve implemented, in case it’s helpful as a checklist:
Updated my course terms: I’ve replaced the cancellation section with a current version that references the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 (the UK equivalent) and EU consumer law, and links out to my refund policy for the full details.
Added a refund policy to my website: this is now a standalone page linked in my footer, written in plain English so customers can easily understand what they’re entitled to. You can see it at thewebsitementor.com/refunds. My position is a 14-day money-back guarantee for everyone, which goes beyond what the law strictly requires but makes my position clear and consistent.
Enabled the withdrawal settings in ThriveCart: this activates the withdrawal button in the Customer Hub so EU customers can formally invoke their right during the 14-day window.
Added the waiver checkbox to my checkout pages: this is a separate step from enabling the settings. You have to go into each checkout page and add the checkbox, then link it to your refund policy. I’ll show you how with screenshots below.
How to set this up in ThriveCart
Toggle the Right of Withdrawal option for your product on. This is where you’ll find the setting:
Click into the edit options for your product. Select the Compliance tab at the top right of your product settings.
The withdrawal toggle
These settings live inside each individual product in ThriveCart. You can either go through this one by one, or you can set it up for one product, and when you save it, you’ll have an option to set it up on all your products with one click.
This enables the withdrawal button in the ThriveCart Customer Hub. Customers who bought that product and are within their 14-day window will see the option to withdraw. Turn this on for every product you sell to EU consumers.
Withdrawal window length
This defaults to 14 days, which is the legal minimum. You can extend it if you want to offer more, but there’s no reason to unless you want to. I left mine at 14.
Waiver checkbox for digital products
Tick “Give customers the option to waive the right of withdrawal for digital products.” Then tick “Make this checkbox mandatory before purchase.” If it’s not mandatory, customers can skip it, get immediate access, and still claim a refund within 14 days. Make it mandatory.
The default waiver copy reads: “I consent to immediate access and waive my right of withdrawal for this and any related funnel order offers.” This is legal language so don’t edit it casually. If you’re unsure whether it covers your specific product, check with a legal professional.
Save the settings.
If you now go and check your checkout page, expecting to see new settings, you’ll be disappointed.
Enabling these settings is not the same as having the checkbox live on your checkout page. You also need to go into your checkout page editor, select your form, add the checkbox element by selecting it in the left hand column and link it to your terms and conditions.
A note on Stripe Connect+ and PayPal Enhanced
ThriveCart’s compliance tools only work with Stripe Connect+ or PayPal Enhanced. If you’re still on legacy Stripe or PayPal settings, you’ll need to migrate before any of this is available to you. ThriveCart says the migration takes about five minutes – here’s their guide.
A quick summary of what to do
If you sell to EU customers and haven’t done anything yet:
- Check whether you’re using Stripe Connect+ or PayPal Enhanced in ThriveCart. If not, migrate first.
- Enable the withdrawal settings inside each ThriveCart product.
- Add the waiver checkbox to your checkout pages and link to your T&Cs.
- Add a clear cancellation/refund policy to your website, in plain English, that’s easy for a visitor to find.
- Update your terms and conditions to remove any outdated legislation references and align with current UK and EU consumer law.
- If you sell coaching or service packages, get your contracts reviewed by a lawyer.
The compliance burden here is real but it’s not overwhelming. Most of it is a one-afternoon job if your ThriveCart products and legal documents are already in reasonable shape. I pulled it all together in a couple of hours. If you want any help with putting yours together, I can help you with the implementation in a Power Hour session.
As a reminder, this post reflects my own understanding and the steps I’ve taken in my business. It is not legal advice. If you have questions specific to your situation, please consult a legal professional who specialises in consumer law.
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