November 5, 2026

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The European Post

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November 5, 2026

Newsletter

The European Post

Policy • Diplomacy • strategic insight

LATEST
Importers Count Down To EU Deforestation Regulation DateFactories Slow As Euro Area Industrial Production DropsCircular Economy Act Slips A Week As Textile Makers PushDAC Recast Would Fold Nine Tax Cooperation Directives Into OneThird-Country Satellites Face EU Space Act Certification HurdleMexico Signature Gives EU-Mexico Agreement Its First Real TestGulf Partnership Stalls as the EU-GCC Summit Loses Its New DateIndonesia Trade Agreement Targets 2027 Start For Palm Oil And TextilesMercosur Agreement Waits On Court As Farm Fears PersistSouth Korea Summit Adds Defence And Digital Trade PillarsCouncil Receives EU India Trade Deal With €4 Billion SavingsInfringement Procedures Hit Ten Year High In Commission ReviewGreen Claims Directive Withdrawn After Three Years Of StalemateEU Customs Reform Puts Parcel Handling Fee On 1 November ClockEuro Area Inflation Hits 4.0 percent In October As Energy Costs Jump 20.8 percentBaltic Sea Fishing Opportunities Rise For Herring And Sprat In 2027Brussels Convenes Ukraine Reconstruction Talks Before Abu Dhabi RoundBeijing Consensus Points Leave EU China Trade Talks Short On DetailEhler Compromise Reshapes European Competitiveness FundRescuers Gather At European Civil Protection Forum 2026Importers Count Down To EU Deforestation Regulation DateFactories Slow As Euro Area Industrial Production DropsCircular Economy Act Slips A Week As Textile Makers PushDAC Recast Would Fold Nine Tax Cooperation Directives Into OneThird-Country Satellites Face EU Space Act Certification HurdleMexico Signature Gives EU-Mexico Agreement Its First Real TestGulf Partnership Stalls as the EU-GCC Summit Loses Its New DateIndonesia Trade Agreement Targets 2027 Start For Palm Oil And TextilesMercosur Agreement Waits On Court As Farm Fears PersistSouth Korea Summit Adds Defence And Digital Trade PillarsCouncil Receives EU India Trade Deal With €4 Billion SavingsInfringement Procedures Hit Ten Year High In Commission ReviewGreen Claims Directive Withdrawn After Three Years Of StalemateEU Customs Reform Puts Parcel Handling Fee On 1 November ClockEuro Area Inflation Hits 4.0 percent In October As Energy Costs Jump 20.8 percentBaltic Sea Fishing Opportunities Rise For Herring And Sprat In 2027Brussels Convenes Ukraine Reconstruction Talks Before Abu Dhabi RoundBeijing Consensus Points Leave EU China Trade Talks Short On DetailEhler Compromise Reshapes European Competitiveness FundRescuers Gather At European Civil Protection Forum 2026

Digital Fairness Act Proposal Falls Due This Quarter As Firms Brace

Arber Zeneli
Regulatory Affairs Reporter, Consumer Protection

Amsterdam: The Digital Fairness Act is due as a Commission proposal in the fourth quarter of 2026, which means the text could arrive at any point before the end of December. The Commission work programme for 2026, published as COM(2025) 870, lists it as a legislative initiative for that quarter, and the page tracking the file does not show whether the proposal has been adopted yet.

The Digital Fairness Act aims to close gaps in consumer law that the older directives never anticipated. The Commission held a public consultation until 24 October 2025, and the initiative targets dark patterns, meaning deceptive or addictive interface design, and the addictive design of digital products. It also covers marketing by social media influencers and what the Commission describes as unfair personalisation practices that exploit consumer vulnerabilities.

Subscriptions are part of the background. Consumers face difficulties cancelling and renewing digital subscriptions, and the Commission has identified unfair contract terms as a further concern. A 2024 fitness check of three EU consumer directives showed where the rules fall short, and the Digital Fairness Act is meant to act on that evidence.

The Digital Fairness Act also carries a promise to business. The Commission says it will streamline obligations, notably by reviewing certain consumer information requirements in certain types of contracts. That balance reflects the political mood in Brussels, where simplification has become a condition for almost every new proposal.

Parliament and the Council have already staked out ground. Parliament adopted a resolution on addictive design on 12 December 2023, and the Council adopted conclusions on influencers on 14 May 2024. The Parliament’s research service published a briefing on addictive design in May 2026 and one on influencer marketing in December 2025, so lawmakers will not start from a blank page.

Stakeholders disagree on how far to go. Consumer organisations want tighter rules, and more than 200 civil society groups have urged the Commission in an open letter to deliver an ambitious proposal. Platforms take the opposite view, and TikTok, for example, argued in the consultation that the need for intervention is very limited.

The next weeks will show which side wins the drafting. If the Commission includes binding limits on addictive design and clear rules for influencers, the Digital Fairness Act would reshape how apps, games and online shops design their screens. If it settles for lighter guidance, consumer groups will argue that the rules fail the people they were written to protect. Either way, the legislative process in Parliament and the Council will run well into 2027.

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