The EU AI Act in France: What Online Shops Must Disclose
AI ActThe EU Artificial Intelligence Act — Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 — applies directly in France as a Regulation, without a separate French transposition law. It entered into force on 1 August 2024 and rolls out in stages: prohibited AI practices from 2 February 2025, general-purpose AI model rules from 2 August 2025, and most high-risk obligations from 2 August 2026.
For a French online shop, the practical heart of the Regulation is Article 50 — the transparency rules. This guide sets out what a shop operating in France should disclose, why French-language disclosure matters, and how national enforcement is still being organised.
Shops are usually deployers
Few merchants build their own AI. Most use third-party tools — a chat assistant, an image generator, a writing aid. A shop that uses such a system in its business is generally a deployer under the AI Act. Deployers face fewer obligations than the providers who build the systems, but the Article 50 transparency duties apply to them directly.
What Article 50 asks of you
Disclose AI interactions
If customers interact with an AI chatbot or voice assistant, they must be informed they are dealing with an AI system, unless it is already obvious. A short notice at the start of the conversation normally does the job.
Label synthetic media
AI-generated or AI-manipulated images, audio and video should be marked as such. Deep fakes must be disclosed. Some AI-generated text published to inform the public also falls within scope, although an ordinary product description sits outside that concern.
- Chatbots and voice assistants: state that it is AI.
- AI-generated imagery: label it.
- Deep fakes and synthetic audio or video: disclose clearly.
Disclosure in French
Article 50 requires clear and distinguishable disclosure at the first interaction. In France, the Toubon law and general consumer-protection rules have long required information directed at French consumers to be provided in French. A transparency notice offered only in English is therefore unlikely to be sufficient for a French-facing shop.
Who is the authority in France?
The AI Act requires each Member State to designate national competent and market-surveillance authorities. In France these designations were still being finalised through 2025 and into 2026. France has natural candidates — its data-protection and consumer-protection regulators are well established — but the precise allocation of AI Act supervision should be treated as still settling. Check the current designation rather than assume a fixed body.
Checklist for a French shop
- Map where AI meets the customer across your storefront.
- Add a clear French notice for any customer-facing chatbot.
- Label AI-generated images and any synthetic media.
- Record which tools are AI-based and who provides them.
For the broader picture, see our overview of the EU AI Act and our complete AI Act guide.
This article is educational, not legal advice.