September 27, 2026 is when the EU's Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition (EmpCo) Directive becomes enforceable across EU member states. Any business making environmental claims in EU-facing marketing — on websites, packaging, social media, or advertising — needs to audit those claims before that date. This guide explains what a greenwashing checker identifies, what compliance requires, and the enforcement landscape businesses face.
What Is a Greenwashing Checker?
A greenwashing checker is a tool that scans marketing content — web pages, product descriptions, advertising copy — and flags environmental claims that may be unsubstantiated, misleading, or prohibited under applicable regulation. The Green Claims Scanner analyzes text for environmental claim patterns and rates them against the EU's legal requirements for substantiation.
Greenwashing — making environmental claims that are false, misleading, or impossible to verify — has attracted increasing regulatory and litigation attention across the EU and UK. The tools and regulation have matured together: the EmpCo Directive creates specific prohibited claim categories, and automated scanners can identify whether your marketing content contains them.
What a greenwashing checker does:
- Identifies generic environmental claims ("eco-friendly", "green", "sustainable", "natural")
- Flags carbon offset and carbon neutral claims requiring substantiation
- Detects unsubstantiated comparative environmental claims
- Highlights environmental achievement claims that need third-party certification
- Rates overall claim risk against EU regulatory standards
What it does not replace: legal review by counsel familiar with EU consumer protection law, sector-specific regulations, and the technical substantiation evidence required for specific claims. The scanner is a first-pass audit tool — not a compliance certification.
The EU EmpCo Directive: September 2026 Enforcement
The Directive 2024/825/EU on Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition (EmpCo) was adopted in February 2024 and required member state transposition by March 27, 2026. National enforcement begins September 27, 2026.
The EmpCo Directive amends the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (UCPD) and the Consumer Rights Directive. It adds environmental claims to the list of misleading commercial practices subject to enforcement, with specific prohibited actions. For businesses, this means existing consumer protection enforcement infrastructure — national consumer protection authorities across all 27 EU member states — will be applying it from September 2026.
Key elements of the directive that affect marketing immediately:
- Generic environmental claims prohibited unless backed by demonstrated excellent environmental performance relevant to the claim
- Carbon offset claims restricted: claiming a product is "carbon neutral" or has a "reduced carbon footprint" based on carbon offsetting is now misleading if offsets are the primary mechanism
- Sustainability labels must be based on approved certification schemes or established by public authorities
- Future environmental performance claims must be accompanied by concrete, verifiable commitments and milestones
Run your website through the Green Claims Scanner to identify which of your current claims require attention before September.
Which Environmental Claims Are Now Restricted?
The EmpCo Directive prohibits specific types of claims. The European Commission published detailed Q&A guidance in November 2025 clarifying which claim types fall within scope. The most commonly encountered prohibited or restricted categories:
| Claim Type | Status Under EmpCo | What Is Required |
|---|---|---|
| "Eco-friendly", "green", "sustainable" | Prohibited unless substantiated | Must demonstrate excellent environmental performance. Generic use is prohibited. |
| "Carbon neutral" or "climate positive" | Restricted when based primarily on offsets | Only allowed if actual emissions reductions are primary mechanism; offsets supplemental |
| "Made from recycled materials" | Permitted with quantification | Specific percentage must be stated and verifiable |
| "Packaging is compostable" | Permitted with conditions | Must specify home vs industrial composting; home compostable claims require evidence |
| "Better for the environment than X" | Permitted if substantiated | Comparison methodology must be disclosed and verifiable |
| Eco-label or sustainability certification | Permitted if approved scheme | Must be based on EU Ecolabel, Type I ISO 14024, or public authority scheme |
The "excellent environmental performance" standard for generic claims is deliberately high. The Commission's guidance indicates that a product performing better than average in its category does not meet the threshold — only products demonstrating leading environmental performance can use generic claims. Most businesses should assume generic claims need replacement with specific, substantiated ones. See our guide on carbon neutral claim restrictions in the EU for detailed analysis.
How to Run a Green Claims Audit Before September 2026
A structured green claims audit covers four areas: website content, packaging and product labeling, advertising (paid and organic social), and contractual claims (sustainability reports, investor communications). The steps:
Step 1: Inventory All Environmental Claims
Export your website's text content and catalog every claim that references environmental performance. This includes product descriptions, homepage copy, about pages, and blog content. The Green Claims Scanner automates this for web pages. For offline materials, manual review is necessary.
Step 2: Classify Each Claim
Sort claims into three categories: (a) claims you have documented substantiation for, (b) claims you can get substantiation for before September 2026, and (c) generic claims that cannot be substantiated to the "excellent environmental performance" standard. Category (c) claims should be removed or replaced.
Step 3: Review Your Evidence for Categories (a) and (b)
Substantiation must be credible, verifiable, and specific to the claim. For specific claims ("30% recycled content"), internal production records are typically sufficient. For comparative or performance claims, third-party testing or lifecycle assessment data is required. For certification-based claims, current valid certification from an approved scheme must be on file. Check the ECGT compliance deadline guide for documentation requirements.
Step 4: Replace Non-Compliant Claims
Replace generic claims with specific ones. "Eco-friendly packaging" becomes "packaging made from 40% post-consumer recycled plastic (certification available upon request)." "Sustainable" becomes the specific performance data that underlies the claim. This is more work than removing claims — but specific, substantiated claims also perform better with informed consumers than vague ones.
Step 5: Establish a Claims Review Process
Build a sign-off process for new environmental claims before publication. Compliance teams or legal counsel should review any new green claim before it goes live. The enforcement environment from September 2026 onward makes post-publication correction more expensive than pre-publication review. See the ECGT compliance guide for full process documentation.
The Green Claims Directive: Status as of February 2026
Separate from the EmpCo Directive — which is now law — the Green Claims Directive (GCD) proposed in 2023 would have required mandatory third-party verification for all voluntary environmental claims before publication. The European Commission paused the GCD in 2025 as part of broader ESG regulation simplification efforts.
The GCD pause does not change EmpCo enforcement. The EmpCo Directive is finalized law, with September 2026 enforcement dates fixed. The GCD, if revived, would add additional requirements on top of EmpCo — but businesses cannot treat the GCD pause as reducing their EmpCo obligations.
The practical implication: prepare for EmpCo enforcement now. If the GCD is revived, the substantiation work done for EmpCo compliance is largely reusable. See the full analysis in our ECGT Directive 2024/825 explanation.
Enforcement: What Businesses Face After September 2026
EmpCo enforcement is handled by national consumer protection authorities, using existing UCPD enforcement powers. The enforcement tools available to national authorities include:
- Cease and desist orders requiring removal of non-compliant claims
- Fines up to 4% of annual EU turnover (the UCPD maximum, which member states must implement for EmpCo violations)
- Reputational disclosure requirements (publication of enforcement actions)
- Consumer class action rights — the EU Representative Actions Directive enables NGOs and consumer organizations to file collective actions
The compliance risk is higher for companies with significant environmental marketing investments. A fashion brand with a "sustainable collection" landing page, a food brand with "planet-friendly" product claims, or a financial services firm with ESG-product marketing all face material exposure. The enforcement environment from September 2026 treats generic greenwashing as an unfair commercial practice — not a soft compliance issue.
Run the Green Claims Scanner now to get a risk score for your current marketing claims before enforcement begins.
FAQ: Greenwashing Checker and EU Compliance 2026
When does EU greenwashing enforcement start?
The EmpCo Directive (2024/825/EU) becomes enforceable September 27, 2026, after member state transposition by March 27, 2026. National consumer protection authorities across the EU will apply the directive's prohibited environmental claim rules from that date. The directive has been enforceable law since its adoption — September 2026 is when national enforcement regimes must be active.
Is "eco-friendly" banned in the EU?
Generic use of "eco-friendly" without substantiation is prohibited under the EmpCo Directive. The term can only be used if the product demonstrates excellent environmental performance relevant to the claim. For most products, "eco-friendly" used as a general descriptor without specific evidence backing it up will be treated as a misleading environmental claim from September 2026.
What evidence is needed to substantiate a green claim?
Evidence requirements depend on the claim type. Specific quantitative claims ("40% recycled content") require production records or supplier certification. Performance claims ("30% lower carbon footprint") require lifecycle assessment data or third-party testing. Comparative claims require disclosed methodology and verifiable basis. Generic claims ("sustainable", "eco-friendly") require evidence of excellent environmental performance — typically sector-leading, not average.
Does the Green Claims Directive still apply?
The Green Claims Directive (proposed 2023) was paused by the European Commission in 2025. It has not been adopted and is not currently law. The EmpCo Directive (2024/825/EU) is adopted law and enforceable from September 2026. Businesses should focus compliance preparation on EmpCo — the GCD pause does not reduce EmpCo obligations.
What are the penalties for greenwashing in the EU?
Under EmpCo, member states must implement fines up to 4% of annual EU turnover for serious violations. Beyond fines, enforcement authorities can issue cease and desist orders, require corrective claims, and publish enforcement actions. Consumer organizations can bring collective actions under the EU Representative Actions Directive, adding litigation exposure beyond regulatory fines.