On October 19, 2026, the UK government published draft guidance for a new consumer subscription contracts regime under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCCA). The requirements come into force on January 1, 2027, and are designed to kill so-called "subscription traps": deals that renew automatically at a higher price or are far harder to cancel than they were to join.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who announced the move in August 2026 as one of a series of "everyday fixes" aimed at the cost of living, said the goal is simple: "We're also making it as easy to leave a subscription as it is to join." The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will enforce the regime and has already been launching investigations and fines.
What exactly changed
Existing law already required pre-contract information and a 14-day cooling-off period at sign-up — but said little about what happens after you subscribe, which is where subscription traps live. Old rule versus new:
- Up-front information: Key facts could once sit buried in full terms. Now traders must present "key" information — recurring payments, frequency, amount, minimum total payable, and when reminders will arrive — separately from the full terms, in plain language, as close as possible to the point of contracting. Customers must expressly acknowledge that ordering creates an obligation to pay.
- Renewal reminders: No mandatory warnings existed before renewal. Now businesses must send reminder notices when a free or discounted trial converts to paid, and roughly every six months for auto-renewing weekly, monthly or quarterly contracts with no concessionary period.
- Cancellation: Exiting could once mean phone mazes and retention gauntlets. Now exit must be straightforward — and where a subscription was taken out online, consumers must be able to end it online.
- Cooling-off rights: Before, one 14-day window at sign-up. Now a second 14-day renewal cooling-off period applies — after trial conversions and on renewals committing the consumer for 12 months or more. Missing or wrong information can stretch the window to up to 12 months.
Who is affected
The rules apply to business-to-consumer subscription contracts entered into on or after January 1, 2027 — subject to Parliament approving the draft regulations — across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Any trader whose contract auto-renews and triggers further payments is in scope: streaming services, apps and websites, monthly-billed software, gym memberships, and subscription boxes.
Some contracts stay outside the regime, including financial services, telecoms, utilities, and certain charitable memberships such as cultural and heritage organisations. Legal commentary also warns businesses not to assume existing subscriptions are untouched: transitional provisions are still being finalised, and the safe assumption is that subscriptions rolling past January 2027 will need reminder notices and clean cancellation routes too.
What you need to do
If you are a subscriber: Audit your subscriptions now — what you pay for, when each renews, the post-trial price. From January 1, 2027, every qualifying new subscription must carry key up-front information, renewal reminders, an online exit if you signed up online, and two cooling-off windows. If a business breaches these duties, you may be entitled to cancel and claim a refund.
If you are a business: The deadline is January 1, 2027. Compliance means reviewing the whole customer journey — website, payment flow, renewal communications and cancellation process. Build key-information disclosures into the final checkout step, set up reminders on the six-month rhythm and at trial conversions, and offer online cancellation for online sign-ups.
Why it matters
The consumer case: With over 155 million active subscriptions in the UK, paying for things nobody wants has become an economy of its own. Citizens Advice previously found that 26% of UK adults took out a subscription accidentally in the course of a year. Mandatory reminders, honest up-front pricing and an easy exit directly target that "subscription trap" economy.
The business case: Compliance means re-engineering checkout flows, building notice-delivery systems, and accepting that missed information duties can stretch cooling-off windows to 12 months — under a regime where the CMA can fine businesses and consumers hold direct enforcement rights. Industry voices warn the burden falls hardest on smaller traders, and edge cases like refunds for services used heavily early in a subscription still need clearer guidance.
The reform may not stop at subscriptions: the government will also consult on adding "fake" discounts — invented "was" prices and phoney half-price deals — to the UK's list of banned commercial practices.
Mark the calendar: January 1, 2027. That is the day the UK's subscription traps are supposed to spring open — and the day subscribers and subscription businesses alike need to be ready.