EmpCo Directive: EU implementation status and what companies need to know

The Empowering Consumers Directive (EU 2024/825) was to be transposed into national law across the entire EU by 27 March 2026 with application from 27 September 2026. However, many Member States missed the transposition deadline. What does this mean for companies making environmental claims or using sustainability labels? And why is it an advantage if your certification partners are already compliant today?

What is the EmpCo Directive?

The Empowering Consumers Directive, also known as EmpCo or the ECGT Directive, is an EU directive that entered into force on 26 March 2024. It amends the existing Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (2005/29/EC) and the Consumer Rights Directive (2011/83/EU). Its aim is to protect consumers from misleading environmental claims (greenwashing) and to improve the transparency of sustainability labels.

EmpCo is already existing EU law. The obligation for EU Member States to comply begins on 27 September 2026.

Key prohibitions (unfair commercial practices) under EmpCo

Under EmpCo, the following practices are prohibited in B2C communication:

1. Offsetting-based climate neutrality claims at product level (e.g. "climate neutral", "CO₂ offset")
2. Generic environmental claims without proven outstanding environmental performance (e.g. "environmentally friendly", "green", "eco")
3. Sustainability labels without a certification system or without official recognition

Companies that continue to use generic or offsetting-based claims after 27 September 2026 risk cease-and-desist orders, fines, and reputational damage.

Transposition Deadline: 27 March 2026

EU Member States were required to transpose the EmpCo Directive into national law by 27 March 2026. On 28 May 2026, the European Commission launched infringement proceedings against 20 Member States that failed to notify their full transposition on time: Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Estonia, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Cyprus, Latvia, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Finland, and Sweden.

Only 7 out of 27 EU Member States met the transposition deadline.

Overview: Transposition Status of Selected EU Countries (as of 24 June 2026)

The table shows: Even three months before the application date, most EU countries have not yet completed transposition.

What happens if an EU country misses the deadline?

If a Member State fails to transpose the EmpCo Directive on time, a graduated EU infringement procedure applies:

1. Formal letter of notice
   The European Commission sends a "Letter of Formal Notice." The Member State typically has two months to respond and communicate its transposition measures. On 28 May 2026, 20 Member States were formally notified.
    
2. Reasoned opinion
   If a satisfactory response is not received, the Commission issues a "Reasoned Opinion": a formal request to transpose within a set deadline.
    
3. Action before the CJEU
   Under Article 258 TFEU, the Commission may bring the Member State before the Court of Justice of the European Union.

Does the Directive apply even without national transposition?

The EmpCo Directive is fundamentally addressed to Member States and, without transposition, is not directly applicable to relationships between individuals and companies or between companies. However, national courts are obliged to interpret existing law in conformity with EmpCo from 27 September 2026, including between private parties. Furthermore, the EU Commission clarified in its official FAQ of 18 May 2026:

"From that date, traders will need to ensure that their environmental claims and sustainability labels in a business-to-consumer context comply with the new provisions, including for existing products."

Furthermore: as soon as a company sells into a Member State that has already transposed the directive, the requirements there are directly applicable regardless of the transposition status in the country of origin.

This means that companies in countries without national transposition should also be compliant from 27 September 2026.

Waiting for the national law is not a compliance strategy.

What do companies need to do now?

1. Review environmental claims: Check all claims on packaging, websites, social media, and advertising materials for compliance.
2. Validate sustainability labels: Ensure that labels used are based on a recognised certification system or are officially recognised by public authorities.
3. Remove offsetting-based claims: Statements such as "climate neutral through offsetting" are to be avoided from September 2026.
4. Specify generic claims: Statements such as "environmentally friendly" must be supplemented with specific, verifiable information on the same medium.
5. Adapt existing products: Non-compliant claims on already-produced packaging can be corrected, e.g. with stickers, or supplemented with additional information at the point of sale.

How ClimatePartner supports its customers

ClimatePartner has already fully aligned its Certification Programme with the requirements of the EmpCo Directive:

• Certification system with independent third-party verification: Compliant with the requirements for sustainability labels under Art. 2(r) of the amended Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (Art. 1(1)(b)(r) EmpCo)
• Transparency via Climate-ID / Tracking-ID: All certification information is publicly accessible
• Communication guidelines: Clear specifications on which claims are permissible and which are not

Companies using ClimatePartner as their certification partner already meet the EmpCo Directive's requirements for sustainability labels today.

In short: Don't wait for national laws, act today

The EmpCo Directive marks a paradigm shift in environmental communication. Regardless of whether the respective national law has already been adopted, from 27 September 2026, the new rules should be complied with EU-wide. Companies that review and adapt their communication now will avoid legal risks while strengthening customer trust.

Would you like to know whether your environmental communication is EmpCo-compliant?

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