The EU right of withdrawal is a cooling-off period for many distance and off-premises contracts. It is not a universal return policy and it is separate from a legal guarantee for faulty goods.
When the period starts
- Goods: generally 14 days from the day you, or a person you nominate other than the carrier, receive the goods.
- Services: generally 14 days from the day the contract is concluded.
- Digital content without a tangible medium: the contract has its own exception rules. If delivery starts after your prior express consent and acknowledgment that you lose the right, the withdrawal right may no longer apply.
National rules can provide additional protections or different details. Do not assume that every country has exactly the same deadline in every situation. For the digital-content distinction, see the EU digital content refund guide.
Common exceptions
The cooling-off period may not apply to categories such as personalised goods, rapidly perishable goods, certain unsealed hygiene or software products, fully performed services started with the required consent, and digital content already supplied after the required consent and acknowledgment.
The exception depends on the facts and the checkout record. A seller should be able to point to the contract term and consent it relies on; do not treat a download or an opened package as the entire analysis.
How to exercise the right
- Send a clear written statement before the applicable deadline. A reason is normally not required.
- Include the order reference, product or service, purchase date and the remedy you request.
- Save the email, form confirmation, invoice and delivery or access records.
- Return physical goods according to the seller's instructions. Return postage can be the consumer's cost when the seller disclosed it in advance.
- Keep proof of dispatch and the seller's response. EU rules can allow a seller to wait for the goods or proof of their return before issuing the reimbursement.
If the product is faulty or does not match the contract, use the EU legal guarantee guide as well. A defect claim is not the same as changing your mind.