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Belgian online traders must incorporate a mandatory online withdrawal function by 19 June 2026. Consumers who conclude distance contracts enjoy a right of withdrawal, allowing them to cancel without giving any reason and without incurring any penalty. This right is a cornerstone of EU consumer protection law.

Belgium’s Act of 20 April 2026 introduces a new notification obligation for businesses that use automatic renewal clauses in fixed-term B2C contracts. From 1 May 2027, businesses must inform consumers at least 15 days before the consumer’s deadline to object to a renewal.

This article is an updated version of Chapter 2 originally from our 2025 blog series “Retail promotions & pricing: legal essentials for businesses” and was revised in May 2026 following the Council of State‘s decisions of 20 May 2026 to annul fines imposed on textile retailers for breaching Belgium’s statutory sales period rules. Promotions and price reductions are powerful tools in the retail sector, and are subject to legal regulations.

For years, many businesses have followed the same playbook when ending a commercial agency relationship: send the termination notice, then use the notice period to negotiate a quick, cost-effective settlement before things get complicated. On 23 April 2026 Europe’s highest court put a definitive end to that approach.

The Veterinary Medicinal Products Regulation (EU) 2019/6 has applied in the EU since 28 January 2022, replacing Directive 2001/82/EC. The new rules on good manufacturing practice (GMP) will in turn be fleshed out by Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2091, which will apply from 16 July 2026. In addition, the European Commission is introducing new GMP requirements concerning the retention of samples for veterinary medicinal products that are repackaged for parallel trade.

CEPANI, the Belgian Centre for Arbitration and Mediation, has issued new Arbitration Rules entering into force on 1 June 2026, building on the modernisation achieved in the 2020 revision with the core objective of delivering a clearer, more efficient dispute resolution framework. Below is an overview of what we consider to be the five most noteworthy changes. The 2026 Rules formally embed mediation at every stage of the arbitral process.

After years of legislative process, the local transposition deadline of 16 April 2026 for AIFMD II (Directive 2024/927/EU) has finally arrived. This marks a significant milestone for the investment fund industry across the European Union, bringing with it a range of important changes for both fund managers and the vehicles they manage.

In Case T‑278/25, the EU General Court recently dismissed as inadmissible a challenge brought by a patient advocacy association against the European Commission’s refusal to renew the conditional marketing authorisation for a treatment against Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). The case is significant because it adds to the case law on contesting Commission decisions relating to the marketing of medicinal products.

Under EU pharmaceutical law, certain medicines fall outside the scope of Directive 2001/83/EC (i.e. the Community code on medicinal products for human use). This includes “magistral formulae” (prepared in a pharmacy for an individual patient on prescription) and “officinal formulae” (prepared in a pharmacy in accordance with a pharmacopoeia and supplied directly to that pharmacy’s patients).

Every year, Belgium’s federal ministers publish their policy notes for discussion in Parliament. They give a high-level snapshot of what each minister plans to focus on in the coming year. For the pharmaceutical industry, the healthcare policy note is usually the one to watch. Interestingly, the economic policy note also weighs in on pharma this year.