Commercial Influence (France): the Decree of 28th November 2025 Finally Renders Article 8 of the French “Influencers Act” Operational

Under French law, Decree No. 2025-1137 of 28th November 2025 completes, more than two years after its entry into force, the implementation of Article 8 of Law No. 2023-451 of 9th June 2023, known as the “Influencers Act”, which governs commercial influence activities and aims to combat abuses observed on social media platforms.

Long awaited by industry professionals, this decree was indispensable to the effective application of a legislative framework that had, until now, remained largely inoperative due to the lack of implementing regulatory provisions.

The French “Influencers Act”: a New Legal Framework for Commercial Influence

The Law of 9th June 2023 establishes, for the first time under French law, a specific legal regime governing commercial influence activities. Its objectives are twofold:

• to enhance transparency in promotional content; and
• to provide legal certainty for contractual relationships between the various stakeholders in influencer marketing.

To this end, Article 8 of the Act requires that relationships between influencers, advertisers and/or agents be formalised in writing and include certain mandatory provisions, with a view to preventing misleading or abusive practices, both with respect to consumers and contractual counterparties.

However, the Act delegated to the French regulatory authority the task of determining the threshold above which this written contractual requirement would apply. In the absence of such clarification, Article 8 remained without any real practical effect for over two years.

The Decree of 28th November 2025: the Long-Awaited Introduction of a Mandatory Contractual Threshold

It is against this backdrop that the Decree of 28th November 2025 establishes the threshold triggering the obligation to enter into a written contract, thereby bringing an end to a period of legal uncertainty under French law.

The threshold is set at €1,000 (excluding VAT), assessed on the basis of the aggregate amount of remuneration and the value of benefits in kind (including gifting, products, invitations, services, etc.) granted by the same advertiser to the same influencer over the course of a single calendar year.

Once this threshold is met or exceeded, the conclusion of a written contract becomes mandatory. Such a contract must include, on pain of nullity under French law, a number of essential elements, including in particular:

• the identity of the parties and their contact details (including country of tax residence);
• the nature and scope of the services to be provided;
• the amount of monetary remuneration or the method for calculating it, as well as the value of any benefits in kind;
• the rights and obligations of the parties, notably with respect to intellectual property;
• a statement that the contract is governed by French law where the activity targets an audience established within French territory.

The decree will enter into force on 1st January 2026. From that date onwards, any commercial influence collaboration exceeding the applicable threshold must strictly comply with the above requirements.

Operators continuing to act without a compliant contractual framework will be exposed to significant legal risks under French law, including contract nullity, litigation, evidentiary difficulties and potentially administrative sanctions in the context of regulatory inspections.

A Key Step Before a Possible “Influencers Act 2”

The Decree of 28th November 2025 thus brings an end to a prolonged period of legal uncertainty and finally renders Article 8 of the French “Influencers Act” fully operational.

More broadly, it forms part of an ongoing trend under French law towards greater accountability among commercial influence stakeholders and enhanced consumer protection in the digital environment.

This momentum may continue with a proposed “Influencers Act 2”, currently under preparation in France, which would notably seek to:

• Curb the spread of masculinist discourse on social media;
• Regulate the profession of agent, including on private platforms, in particular to combat aggressive incentives to produce erotic content;
• Introduce taxation rules applicable to influencers’ income;
• Strengthen platform liability, notably with respect to non-compliant products offered on their marketplaces.

In light of the forthcoming entry into force of mandatory contractualisation for influencer/advertiser or agent relationships under French law, and the anticipated adoption of an “Influencers Act 2”, anticipating regulatory developments, securing practices and structuring contractual relationships has now become essential for all players involved in commercial influence activities targeting the French market.