Green Claims Directive

The Green Claims Directive is a proposed EU law aimed at preventing greenwashing by requiring companies to substantiate and communicate explicit environmental claims made to consumers in a clear, reliable and evidence-based way.

The proposal would establish common EU requirements for voluntary environmental claims and environmental labelling schemes, including requirements for substantiation, communication and verification.

What are “green claims”?

These are voluntary statements made by companies about the environmental impact or performance of their products, services, processes or organisations. Examples include:

• “Climate neutral”

• “Made from 30% recycled plastic”

• “Eco-friendly” or “green”

Current status: The Directive has not been adopted. The European Commission announced on 20 June 2025 that it intended to withdraw the proposal, following concerns about its administrative burden and scope. However, the proposal has not formally been withdrawn and the legislative procedure remains blocked.

Prevent greenwashing and restore consumer trust
Ensure that environmental claims made to consumers are reliable, clear and not misleading, enabling consumers to make better-informed purchasing decisions.

Make claims verifiable, comparable and evidence-based
Require environmental claims to be substantiated using appropriate evidence and recognised methods, taking environmental impacts across the relevant life cycle into account where required.

Introduce independent verification and governance of environmental labels
Establish verification requirements for explicit environmental claims and set governance criteria for environmental labelling schemes to improve their credibility and transparency.

Reduce proliferation of low-quality private labels
Establish common criteria for environmental labelling schemes and limit the creation of new schemes that do not provide sufficient added value, helping reduce consumer confusion.

Protect fair competition and reward genuine sustainability efforts
Create a more level playing field for companies making credible environmental claims and reduce the competitive advantage gained through unsupported green marketing.

Complement existing consumer and product rules
The proposal is intended to complement existing EU consumer-protection legislation, including the Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition Directive, as well as sector-specific rules governing environmental claims and labels.

What the proposal covers

The proposal concerns voluntary environmental claims made to consumers in a business-to-consumer (B2C) context about products, services, processes or organisations.

It covers claims communicated through channels such as:

• packaging and product labels;

• advertising and marketing communications;

• websites and online marketplaces;

• other commercial communications directed at consumers.

Examples include explicit claims such as “climate neutral,” “made from 30% recycled material,” “eco-friendly” and other statements presenting a product, service or organisation as having a positive environmental impact or performance.

Geographic and territorial reach

The proposed rules would apply to traders making environmental claims to consumers in the EU, including relevant non-EU businesses targeting EU consumers.

Sectoral alignment and exemptions

The proposal is designed to operate alongside existing EU and sector-specific legislation. Where other EU legislation establishes more specific requirements for environmental claims or labels, those rules would continue to apply.

The treatment of micro-enterprises and other SMEs became a major issue during the legislative negotiations. The Commission subsequently indicated that an exemption for micro-enterprises would be a condition for reconsidering its withdrawal of the proposal. No final exemption or revised scope has been adopted.

Enforcement

If adopted, Member States would be responsible for establishing appropriate verification and enforcement arrangements. The proposal envisages enforcement through competent national authorities and appropriate penalties for non-compliance.

Practical implications

If adopted in its current or a revised form, businesses making environmental claims would need to review their claims, maintain appropriate substantiating evidence and comply with applicable verification and communication requirements.

• 22 March 2023 – Commission proposal
  The European Commission published its proposal for a Directive on the substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims.

• 12 March 2024 – European Parliament position
  The European Parliament adopted its first-reading position on the proposal, including amendments covering substantiation, verification, environmental labelling schemes and support for SMEs.

• 17 June 2024 – Council position
  The Council adopted its general approach, establishing its negotiating position for the trilogue process.

• 28 January 2025 – First trilogue
  The European Parliament, Council and Commission began interinstitutional negotiations on the proposal.

• 24 April 2025 – Second trilogue
  Negotiations continued, focusing on environmental claims and labels, consumer information, verification, access to justice and penalties.

• 20 June 2025 – Commission announces intention to withdraw proposal
  The European Commission announced its intention to withdraw the Green Claims proposal. The third trilogue, scheduled for 23 June 2025, was subsequently cancelled.

• July 2025 – Withdrawal remains unresolved
  The Commission clarified that the proposal had not yet been formally withdrawn. The treatment of micro-enterprises became a key condition in discussions about whether the proposal could proceed.

• 2026 – Legislative process remains blocked
  As of June 2026, the European Parliament's legislative tracker lists the proposal as “Blocked”, with the Council identified as the blocking institution. The Commission's 2026 Work Programme continues to list the proposal as pending.

• No implementation deadline
  Because the Directive has not been adopted, there is currently no transposition deadline or date from which companies must comply with the proposed Green Claims requirements.

• 27 September 2026 – Related consumer rules apply
  Separate from the Green Claims Directive, the Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition Directive will start applying across the EU. These rules already introduce restrictions on certain misleading environmental claims and sustainability labels.

The proposed Green Claims Directive should not be confused with the Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition Directive (EU) 2024/825.

The Empowering Consumers Directive has already been adopted and introduces new rules against misleading environmental claims and unreliable sustainability labels. Member States had to transpose the Directive by 27 March 2026, with the new rules applying from 27 September 2026.

The Green Claims Directive was intended to complement these rules by establishing more detailed requirements for the substantiation, communication and verification of voluntary environmental claims. Its legislative process is currently blocked and its future remains uncertain.