Loi n° 2020-105, the French anti-waste law for a circular economy, is usually called the AGEC law. The ministry responsible for the ecological transition states that the law was published on 5 June 2020. The ministry page was updated on 17 April 2024. On Légifrance the identifier is JORFTEXT000041553759. The law is in force. Check that text for the articles that apply to a given product.
Three themes matter for textiles. First, producer responsibility for clothing, household linen and footwear runs in practice through Refashion, the producer organisation for that stream. Producers pay an eco-contribution. A brand or retailer that places those products on the French market should expect to declare quantities and pay the contribution, unless a national exemption applies.
Second, the law restricts the destruction of unsold non-food goods. That French ban is older, and wider, than the Union ban in the ESPR, which has applied to large enterprises for apparel, clothing accessories and footwear since 19 July 2026. A company selling in France has to meet both. The Union rule does not cancel the French one.
Third, traders must give consumers information on the environmental qualities and characteristics of products. The decree usually cited for that duty is décret n° 2022-748, Légifrance identifier JORFTEXT000045726094. What must be disclosed, and for which products, is set out there. Check the decree before treating a product sheet as complete.
Two further topics come up often and do not yet have a fixed application date. The textile environmental cost, the coût environnemental, is a labelling discussion. No application date has been set. A French bill on fast fashion has been debated. It is not in force. Check the official texts for the latest status of either file. Until a date is fixed, the duties a company can plan around are the AGEC framework, the Refashion scheme, the unsold-goods ban, and the information on environmental characteristics.