Greenwashing Regulations: New Rules under the ECGT Directive (2024/825)

Greenwashing Arrangements, It brings significant changes to the use of environmental claims in the European Union. Greenwashing regulations are becoming more important for businesses, along with the European Union's new rules for protecting consumers from misleading environmental claims. ECGT Directive (EU) 2024/825It sets out the rules companies must follow when promoting their products and services with phrases such as "environment friendly", "green", or "climate friendly". If the general application date of the edit is 27 September 2026 It stands out as.

What is the ECGT Directive (2024/825)?

Well, What is greenwashing (greenwashing) under the ECGT Directive and what new obligations do companies expect? From environmental claims Sustainability Let us examine together the regulations that stand out from their labels, carbon neutral expressions to packaging designs.

What Do Greenwashing Regulations Cover?

Under the Consumer Empowerment Directive for Green Transition (ECGT Directive – 2024/825)Green Washing” (Greenwashing) The Frequently Asked Questions (SSS) guidelines prepared by the European Commission for their regulation are included in the appendix.

The basic regulations and principles submitted by the documents are as follows:

1. Scope and Basic Purpose

The regulation covers targeted changes to the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (UCPD) and the Consumer Rights Directive (CRD).

It targets commercial applications from business to consumer (B2C). Inter-business (B2B) relationships or mandatory corporate sustainability reporting (CSRD) of companies do not fall directly within this scope.

General application date 27 September 2026 It is designated.

2. Environmental Claims and Greenwashing Ban

General Environmental Claims (Generic Claims): General statements with no specific explanation such as "environmental friendly", "green", "ecological" or "climate friendly" are prohibited. For such claims to be used, the product must perform "perfect environmental performance" in EU Ecolabel or official recognized Type I environmental labels standards.
Carbon Neutral Claims: Claims based on carbon offset (offsetting) such as "carbon neutral", "climate neutral" or "reduced CO2 effect" are prohibited at product level. Claims based solely on the product's own value chain and emission reductions on the real life cycle are allowed.
Commitments to the Future: In order for companies to make claims about their future environmental goals, they must submit a detailed implementation plan and resource allocation that is regularly verified by a public, independent third-party expert.
Advertisement of Unrelated Benefits: It is considered unfair commercial practice to present situations that are a natural feature of the product or category or present in each product as if they were a distinctive advantage (such as "bottle water being gluten-free" or "paper not containing plastic").

3. Sustainability Labels and Certification

The use of sustainability labels that are not created by public authorities has been linked to "certification systems" based on independent third-party verification.

Labels created by public authorities of third countries (non-EU) cannot be used in the EU market unless they are based on an official certification system.

4. Packaging Design and Visual Items

Covered (implicit) visuals, such as green leaf, water drop, or green/blue color use, are subject to evaluation if they create a perception of environmental advantage in the consumer.

Although only visual elements that do not contain a written text are not considered "general environmental claims" alone, their unfair or misleading use of visuals is evaluated in a holistic context.

5. Consumer Information, Repairability and Resilience

Repairability Score: In product groups (e.g. smartphones and tablets) where harmonized rules are introduced at the EU level, sellers are required to clearly submit a repairability score to the consumer prior to the contract.
Guarantee and Resilience: As of 27 September 2026, harmonized notices (harmonized notices) regarding legal warranty rights are required to be displayed at points of sale. Harmonized labels (harmonized label) are also used for commercial durability guarantees of more than 2 years offered by the manufacturer.

6. Current Products and Stock Status (Old Stock)

All B2C communications, including old stock that is on the shelf or in distribution from 27 September 2026, must comply with the new rules.

Vendors and manufacturers can implement practical solutions such as tag/output to close incompatible claims in old packaging, or putting additional information boards at the point of sale.

To access the Guide file prepared by the European Commission (European Commission) General Directorate of Justice and Consumers (Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers), please click here.

To access the Regulatory file prepared by the European Commission (European Commission) General Directorate of Justice and Consumers (Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers), please click here.

What's Changing in the New Era for Businesses?

Green Washing ArrangementsThe EU market requires environmental claims to be more concrete and verifiable in product communication to consumers. In particular, the use of phrases such as "environment friendly", "climate neutral" and "sustainable", sustainability labels, visual elements in packaging, and environmental commitments to the future are among the topics to be considered for businesses.

ECGT Directive (2024/825) With the rules introduced by September 27, 2026, it is important for businesses operating in the EU market or selling to EU consumers to review existing marketing and product communications.