Belgium's EmpCo Transposition: What You Need to Know Before 27 September 2026

15 July, 2026

On 29 May 2026, the Belgian government submitted a draft Act to Parliament transposing the EmpCo Directive into Belgian national law. The Act amends Books I and VI of the Code of Economic Law and is expected to enter into force on 27 September 2026. With the deadline less than three months away, companies communicating on sustainability need to act now.

12 new per se prohibited practices

The Act expands the blacklist of automatically unlawful practices under the Code of Economic Law. No individual assessment of consumer impact is required — any of the following exposes a company to immediate legal risk:

1. Greenwashing claims

• Making an environmental claim about an entire product where only part meets the claimed standard.

Using a generic environmental claim — such as "eco", "green", "climate-friendly", "biodegradable" or "bio-based" — without proof of recognised excellent environmental performance on the same medium.

• Claiming carbon or climate neutrality based on offset schemes that do not meet independent verification standards.
• Making future environmental performance claims without a credible, specific and verifiable implementation plan.

2. Sustainability labels

• Displaying a sustainability label not based on a certification scheme meeting minimum transparency and credibility requirements, including independent third-party verification.
• Using a sustainability label scheme that the trader itself owns or administers without independent oversight.

3. Product durability and obsolescence

• Withholding information that a software update will negatively affect a device's performance.
• Presenting a product as repairable when it is not.
• Using consumables designed to prematurely exhaust so as to force repurchase.
• Inducing the purchase of consumable refills before existing stock is genuinely depleted.

4. Other practices

• Claiming that a product meets legal requirements when all competing products are required to meet the same standard.
• Omitting that a device contains a feature restricting the use of third-party consumables.

New definitions and pre-contractual information duties

The Act introduces 11 new definitions into Book I of the Code of Economic Law, mirroring the Directive exactly. Key definitions include:

• Environmental claim: any voluntary business statement suggesting positive, neutral or less harmful environmental performance.
• Generic environmental claim: a vague claim not clearly specified in prominent terms on the same medium.
• Sustainability label: any trust mark or quality mark promoting a product on environmental or social grounds — treated as an environmental claim when it creates an environmental impression.
• Certification scheme: a scheme with minimum requirements on transparency, credibility and independent third-party verification.
• Durability commercial guarantee: a commercial guarantee at no extra cost covering an entire good for more than two years, triggering the obligation to use the EU harmonised durability label.

Companies must also proactively disclose:

• The statutory conformity guarantee in a prominent, harmonised format.
• The EU harmonised durability label where a qualifying commercial guarantee is offered for more than two years at no cost.
• The repairability score of a product, where defined by EU delegated acts.
• Available eco-friendly delivery options for distance contracts.
• The methodology behind sustainability-based comparisons.

Scope

The Act applies to business-to-consumer commercial practices only. B2B obligations fall outside its scope. This contrasts with Germany, where greenwashing rules apply to all commercial practices including B2B, and have been enforced in competitor disputes.

However, B2B companies should not treat the EmpCo rules as irrelevant:

• Supply chain pressure: retailers and brand owners will push upstream suppliers for environmental data, certifications and repairability documentation.
• Contractual exposure: indemnity and warranty clauses in supply contracts are already being revised to address downstream greenwashing liability.
• Shared sustainability labels: manufacturers whose labels appear in retailers' B2C communications share responsibility for ensuring those labels meet certification requirements.
• ESG reporting: claims in sustainability reports that reach consumer-facing channels must comply.
• Competitor risk: misleading environmental claims by a competitor may still be challenged before Belgian courts under the general provisions of the Code of Economic Law.

Enforcement: three channels, available from day one

• Civil enforcement (from 27 September 2026): cease and desist orders, injunctions, damages and nullity of unfair contract terms.
• Criminal enforcement (from 27 September 2026): fines, imprisonment in serious cases, confiscation of breach proceeds and exclusion from public contracts — up to 10% of annual turnover.
• Administrative enforcement (FOD Economie): a 6-month grace period applies, ending 27 March 2027. The Council of State criticised this transitional measure as potentially non-compliant with the Directive.

Companies should not assume the administrative grace period delays all exposure. Civil and criminal enforcement are fully available from entry into force.

How EY Law can help: AI-powered greenwashing tool

EY Law has developed a dedicated offering combining legal expertise with AI-powered technology:

1. Exposure Scan

EY Law has developed an AI greenwashing tool which includes an automated scan of a company's publicly available digital communications — websites, press releases and marketing materials — identifying sustainability claims that may be problematic under the new rules. Findings are classified by risk level, with AI-driven reasoning and proposed mitigation actions, giving companies a rapid baseline assessment and prioritised action list before the deadline.

2. Policy and governance design building 

We can assist clients with the compliance infrastructure needed to prevent future violations: an anti-greenwashing policy with practical Do's and Don'ts, approval workflows for sustainability communications, a whitelist of pre-cleared claims, and integration into existing compliance management systems.

3. Training and ongoing monitoring 

Targeted training for marketing, legal and product teams, tailored checklists for reviewing new claims before publication, continuous web monitoring and horizon scanning for the upcoming Green Claims Directive (expected around 2027), which will introduce further mandatory substantiation requirements, are key parts of the action plan to maintain future compliance.