Online Withdrawal Button in Latvia 2026: New Distance Contract Rules and How to Account for Returns

Online Withdrawal Button in Latvia 2026: New Distance Contract Rules and How to Account for Returns

From 25 September 2026, sellers and service providers in Latvia that conclude distance contracts with consumers online (in an e-shop, app or booking system) must provide a withdrawal function: a clearly visible "Withdraw from contract" button or link (in Latvian: "Atteikties no līguma"). It lets a buyer who has a right of withdrawal cancel the contract directly on the website within 14 days. They must receive an acknowledgement showing the date and time of withdrawal without undue delay.

The requirement comes from Cabinet Regulation No. 562, published in the official gazette "Latvijas Vēstnesis" on 24 September 2026 and in force from the following day. There is no transition period. This article explains who has to act, what the withdrawal function must look like, what has not changed about refunds and returns, and how to record a withdrawal correctly in your books and VAT return.

Key takeaways

• From 25 September 2026, consumer contracts concluded through an online interface that carry a right of withdrawal must offer a withdrawal function labelled "Withdraw from contract" ("Atteikties no līguma") or other unambiguous wording, available throughout the withdrawal period.

• After the consumer submits the withdrawal (button "Confirm withdrawal", "Apstiprināt atteikumu"), you must send an acknowledgement without undue delay, for example by email, stating its content and the date and time of submission.

• The core rules are unchanged: a 14-day withdrawal period, and a refund within 14 days using the same payment method, including standard delivery costs.

• Financial services (banks, lenders, insurers and others) got a separate Regulation No. 561 on the same day, with additional requirements of its own.

• If a withdrawal cancels the sale and money is refunded, record it in your accounts as a correction linked to the original transaction, and if VAT was charged on the sale, correct the VAT as well.

• On 27 September 2026, further amendments to Regulation No. 255 (No. 302) on pre-contractual information take effect. They are a separate requirement worth handling at the same time.

What changed in the rules published on 24 September 2026?

Two Cabinet Regulations were published in the same issue of "Latvijas Vēstnesis" (2026/184). Both transpose Directive (EU) 2023/2673, whose requirements Member States were to apply from 19 June 2026. In Latvia these requirements were introduced by Regulations No. 561 and No. 562, which took effect on 25 September 2026. The Cabinet's mandate for them is Article 10 of the Consumer Rights Protection Law, as amended with effect from 15 September 2026.

For most businesses, Regulation No. 562 is the one that matters. We cover the financial services rules separately at the end of this article.

Note: further amendments take effect on 27 September 2026. Cabinet Regulation No. 302 (adopted 27 May 2025) amends other pre-contractual information requirements in Regulation No. 255. Where applicable, you must show before the order: environmentally friendly delivery options (if you offer them), the harmonised notice on the two-year legal guarantee, the producer's commercial durability guarantee, the minimum period of software updates, and the repairability index or information on spare parts. Some of this only applies if the producer has provided the information to the seller. The commercial durability guarantee is shown with the harmonised label, and only if it is free of charge, covers the whole product and lasts longer than two years. The key practical point: information on that guarantee and on the software update period must be given clearly and prominently directly before the order is placed (amended paragraph 12), i.e. on the checkout page, not only in your terms. Regulation No. 302 transposes Directive (EU) 2024/825 on empowering consumers for the green transition. These are not withdrawal-function requirements, but it makes sense to update your terms and order page for both at once.

One more deadline for e-shops: Article 4.³ of the Consumer Rights Protection Law requires website and app interfaces to be available in Latvian. Compliance is required by 30 June 2027.

Who must provide a withdrawal button?

The obligation applies to distance contracts with consumers concluded through an online interface, such as an e-shop, a mobile app or a booking system. Put precisely: if the consumer has a statutory right of withdrawal and the contract was concluded online, they must be able to exercise that right through the withdrawal function as well.

This means:

• It applies to online shops selling goods, services bought online (courses, subscriptions, service bookings), digital content and digital services, unless one of the statutory exceptions applies.

• It does not apply to business-to-business (B2B) sales, because the right of withdrawal is a consumer right under the Consumer Rights Protection Law.

• It does not apply to contracts excluded from the distance contract rules altogether, such as package travel, real estate transactions and regular food deliveries to households (paragraph 2 of Regulation No. 255). Financial services have their own regulation.

The existing exceptions to the right of withdrawal also remain. Paragraph 22 of Regulation No. 255 lists 13 of them; the most common are:

• goods made to the consumer's specifications or clearly personalised;

• goods that deteriorate quickly or expire soon;

• sealed goods unsuitable for return for health or hygiene reasons, once the consumer has unsealed them;

• audio, video or software packaging, once the consumer has unsealed it;

• accommodation (other than residential letting), transport of goods, catering, vehicle rental or leisure services for a specific date or period;

• services fully performed with the consumer's express consent and acknowledgement that they lose the right of withdrawal;

• digital content whose supply began with the consumer's express consent and acknowledgement that they lose the right of withdrawal, where the trader has confirmed this on a durable medium (paragraph 17).

The remaining exceptions cover, for example, prices dependent on financial market fluctuations, certain alcohol deliveries, urgent repairs requested by the consumer, newspapers outside a subscription, and contracts concluded at public auction.

An important nuance: some exceptions exclude the right of withdrawal from the start, for example for personalised or perishable goods. Others end it only after a specific event: the consumer unseals hygiene goods or audio/video packaging, the service is fully performed, or supply of digital content begins. Until then the right of withdrawal exists, so the withdrawal function must be available. If a given contract carries no right of withdrawal at all, no online withdrawal function is needed for it.

You cannot simply declare an exception because it is more convenient. If your shop sells both goods with and without a right of withdrawal, the withdrawal function must be available for the orders the right applies to.

Selling to other EU countries. Member States had to apply the Directive from 19 June 2026. If you direct sales to consumers in another EU country, those consumers generally keep the protection of their home country's consumer law (Article 6 of the Rome I Regulation). So check the requirements of your main export markets too.

How to build the withdrawal function: 4 mandatory elements

The rules describe not only that a button is required but also how the process must work. This is the content of the new Chapter III¹ of Regulation No. 255 (paragraphs 25.¹–25.⁷).

1. Withdrawal button. It must be labelled "Withdraw from contract" ("Atteikties no līguma") or with other unambiguous, easily legible wording. It must be prominently displayed, easily accessible and continuously available throughout the withdrawal period.

2. Online withdrawal statement. After clicking the button, the consumer can easily provide or confirm three things: their name and surname, details identifying the contract (such as the order number), and the email or other electronic channel for the acknowledgement. These details may be pre-filled so that the consumer only needs to confirm them.

3. Confirmation button. The completed statement is submitted with a button labelled "Confirm withdrawal" ("Apstiprināt atteikumu") or other unambiguous wording.

4. Acknowledgement of receipt. Without undue delay, you must send an acknowledgement on a durable medium (for example by email; in practice, automatically is safest) stating the content of the withdrawal and the date and time it was submitted.

The deadline is met if the consumer sends the online withdrawal statement before the withdrawal period ends (paragraph 25.⁷). What counts is when the notice was sent, not when you send the acknowledgement. The acknowledgement with date and time, together with a system log recording the moment of submission, is important evidence if there is a dispute about timing. This also matters if a customer claims they never received the email.

Our recommendations for implementation (not literal legal requirements, but they help meet the "easily accessible" standard):

• Place the button in the order confirmation email and in the customer account or order page. Do not hide it only behind a terms link in the footer. A button in the email is not a literal legal requirement and does not replace the function in the online interface itself.

• Make it work for guest checkouts as well (for example, via order number and email), so that exercising the right of withdrawal does not become unnecessarily difficult.

• Do not make the reason for withdrawal a required field. The consumer may withdraw without giving any reason (Consumer Rights Protection Law, Article 12(1)). A reason field is fine, but only as optional. Likewise, do not ask for more data than needed to identify the contract (such as a personal ID number). Refunds are normally made to the original payment method.

• Check what your platform offers. On some platforms the withdrawal and returns flow can be configured with built-in tools; others need an extension or custom development. Whatever the platform, check that all four elements above are in place, especially the acknowledgement with content, date and time.

What to update in your terms and withdrawal form

Pre-contractual information (sub-paragraph 5.10 of Regulation No. 255) must now state not only the conditions, time limit and procedure for withdrawal, but also that the withdrawal function exists and where it is located. The annex with the model withdrawal instructions and form has been replaced with a new version.

The annex's guidance gives the following wording for sellers who must provide the withdrawal function (our translation of the official Latvian text):

"You can also exercise your right of withdrawal online [insert web address or explanation of where the withdrawal function is available]. If you use this online function, we will send you an acknowledgement of receipt of the withdrawal on a durable medium (for example, by email) without undue delay, stating its content and the date and time of submission."

The annex also contains a second wording for cases where your website lets consumers fill in and submit the withdrawal form or another unambiguous statement electronically. Use the one that matches your setup.

If your pre-contractual information does not mention the withdrawal function, the information required by sub-paragraph 5.10 has not been given in full. Paragraph 20 of Regulation No. 255 ties the one-year extension of the withdrawal period specifically to failure to provide the sub-paragraph 5.10 information. Whether that also applies when only the details of the withdrawal function are missing has not yet been settled in practice, as the rules have only just taken effect. The risk is serious enough to update your terms without delay.

In practice, this means updating your terms of sale (distance contract terms), your withdrawal form and, if they contain withdrawal wording, your order confirmation email templates.

What has not changed: time limits, refunds and returns

The withdrawal button is a new way to exercise an existing right. The right of withdrawal itself is governed by Article 12 of the Consumer Rights Protection Law (CRPL) and Chapter III of Regulation No. 255, and these provisions were not amended on 25 September 2026.

One more requirement (not a new one) worth checking at the same time as the withdrawal button: the order button must be labelled "order with obligation to pay" ("pasūtījums ar pienākumu maksāt") or similar unambiguous wording. If it is not, the contract is not binding on the consumer (paragraph 13 of Regulation No. 255).

Worked example: a withdrawal from start to bookkeeping entry

Suppose Marta runs a small e-shop and is VAT-registered. A customer orders goods for €121 (including 21% VAT of €21) and chooses the cheapest standard delivery at €4.84 (including VAT of €0.84). The goods are delivered on 1 October. This example is hypothetical and shows the logic of the deadlines and amounts.

The refund due is €125.84: the €121 price of the goods plus €4.84 for standard delivery. Return shipping is paid by the customer, provided Marta clearly said so before the purchase.

The example assumes a 21% VAT rate on both the goods and the delivery charge. The VAT treatment of a specific transaction must be assessed separately.

To split VAT out of a gross amount quickly, use our VAT calculator.

How to record a withdrawal in your books and VAT return

The withdrawal button itself changes nothing in accounting, but it may increase the number of withdrawals because cancelling becomes easier. It is worth getting the process in order now.

Keep two things apart. Your books record not the withdrawal notice itself but its consequences: cancellation of the sale and the refund. Also, not every return of goods is an exercise of the right of withdrawal (goods can come back due to non-conformity or by agreement), while a withdrawal from a service or digital content may involve no physical return at all.

• Correction document. If the sale is cancelled and money refunded, document it with a supporting document (Accounting Law, Article 11) linked to the original transaction. If a VAT invoice was issued for the sale, you would normally issue a credit note referring to it. If the sale is evidenced by a till receipt or another document, record the correction in line with that documentation method. How to issue a credit note correctly is covered in our article on invoice requirements in Latvia.

• VAT correction. If VAT was charged on the original sale, cancelling it also reduces the output VAT. The correction period depends on the VAT and invoice-correction rules applicable to the specific transaction. Take particular care when the sale and its cancellation fall in different tax periods, and agree this with your accountant.

• Cross-border sales and OSS. A submitted OSS return cannot be amended or cancelled. The State Revenue Service (VID) states that corrections to earlier periods are made in the "Corrections" section of a later OSS return, stating the original tax period, the member state of consumption and the VAT adjustment (a reduction with a minus sign). Corrections can be made for three years. More on this in our article on e-commerce accounting in Latvia.

• Payment platform reconciliation. Refunds and fees via Stripe, PayPal or Shopify Payments may appear in your bank statement as net or combined amounts. Match each refund to its order and credit note, or your revenue and VAT will not reconcile at month-end.

• Evidence. Keep the acknowledgement emails, system logs and a withdrawal list (order, date, time, refund date), linked to the original transaction. They help justify corrections and are needed if the Consumer Rights Protection Centre (PTAC) or a customer disputes whether deadlines were met.

• Cash flow. If the 14-day refund deadline coincides with large supplier payments, plan refunds into your cash flow. More in our article on cash flow for small businesses.

If you provide financial services: Cabinet Regulation No. 561

Banks, lenders, insurers, and payment and investment service providers that conclude distance contracts with consumers must apply the new Regulation No. 561 from 25 September 2026. It replaces Regulation No. 648 of 2014. The key points:

• Withdrawal period is 14 days, or 30 days for private pension contracts (paragraph 17). If the consumer did not receive the contract terms and mandatory information, the period ends 12 months and 14 days after the contract was concluded. This limit does not apply if the consumer was not informed of the right of withdrawal at all (paragraph 20).

• Exceptions. Unless the parties agree otherwise, there is no right of withdrawal for services whose price depends on financial market fluctuations (for example currency exchange, securities, investment fund units, derivatives), for travel, baggage and similar short-term insurance of less than one month, or for contracts fully performed at the consumer's express request before withdrawal (paragraph 21).

• Phone calls. At the start of the call the provider must state its name and the commercial purpose of the call, and warn if the call is or may be recorded. With the consumer's consent, only basic information may be given before the contract, with the rest provided on a durable medium immediately after it is concluded (paragraphs 13–14).

• Withdrawal function for contracts concluded online works the same way as for e-shops: "Withdraw from contract", "Confirm withdrawal" and an acknowledgement with date and time (paragraphs 23–29).

• Reminder. If the information was provided less than one day before the contract was concluded, a reminder about the right of withdrawal must be sent 1–7 days afterwards (paragraph 15).

• Human intervention. If the service is provided through online tools (such as a chatbot), the consumer may ask to deal with a person before the contract is concluded and, in justified cases, afterwards (paragraph 36).

• Ban on manipulative interfaces. No choice may be visually highlighted, consumers may not be asked again for a choice already made, and cancelling must not be harder than signing up (paragraphs 38–39).

• Adequate explanations. Before the contract is concluded, the provider must explain free of charge its key features, any ancillary services and the consequences, including those of missed or late payments (paragraph 35).

• Settlement after withdrawal. The provider refunds amounts received within 30 days, less a proportionate charge for services already provided, if the consumer was properly informed about it (paragraphs 30–33). The consumer pays for services already provided and returns anything received within 30 days (paragraph 34). No payment can be charged if the consumer withdraws from an insurance contract before the insurance period starts, if the provider cannot prove the consumer was informed of the amount due, or if performance started before the withdrawal period ended without the consumer's request (paragraphs 31–32).

• Burden of proof. In a dispute, the provider must prove that it met the information, withdrawal and explanation requirements (paragraph 5).

Where another law regulates any of these matters (for example, consumer credit under Article 12.¹ of the Consumer Rights Protection Law), that law applies (paragraph 6).

Common mistakes

• Hidden button. The button is only in the terms document or available only after logging in, even though the customer ordered as a guest.

• No acknowledgement email. The form is submitted, but the customer never receives the mandatory acknowledgement with content, date and time.

• Mandatory reason field. The form cannot be submitted without stating a reason.

• Terms not updated. The website has a button, but the terms of sale and withdrawal form still contain the old wording with no reference to the withdrawal function.

• Delivery not refunded. Only the price of the goods is refunded, although the cheapest standard delivery must be refunded too.

• Refund in another form. Refunding as a gift card or store credit without the consumer's express consent.

• No correction in the books. The money is refunded, but no correction document is prepared, so the original sale still appears in the VAT return.

Checklist for your e-shop

• ☐ Check which of your contracts carry a right of withdrawal and which fall under an exception.

• ☐ Add a "Withdraw from contract" function that is prominent, easily accessible and available in the online interface for the whole withdrawal period (ideally also on the order page, in the customer account and in the confirmation email).

• ☐ Make sure the function lets the consumer easily provide or confirm name and surname, contract identification and a channel for the acknowledgement, with no mandatory reason and no excess data.

• ☐ Add a "Confirm withdrawal" button and an acknowledgement with content, date and time sent without undue delay (ideally automatically).

• ☐ Update your terms of sale, withdrawal instructions and form in line with the new annex.

• ☐ By 27 September 2026, add the pre-contractual information required by Regulation No. 302, where it applies to you.

• ☐ Check that the order button says "order with obligation to pay" or equivalent.

• ☐ Agree with your accountant on the flow of withdrawals, refunds and credit notes, including VAT and OSS corrections.

• ☐ Run a test withdrawal on a guest order and check that everything works.

Frequently Asked Questions

From what date must an e-shop in Latvia have a withdrawal button?

From 25 September 2026. Cabinet Regulation No. 562 was published on 24 September 2026 and took effect the next day, with no transition period.

Does a B2B online shop need a withdrawal button?

No, if you sell only to businesses. The right of withdrawal is a consumer right. If both businesses and private individuals buy on your site, the obligation applies to purchases made by consumers.

Is a PDF withdrawal form or an email address enough?

A consumer can still withdraw using the form, by email or by letter, and that is a valid withdrawal. But for contracts concluded online, you must additionally provide the online withdrawal function with a button, form and acknowledgement.

Does the customer have to give a reason for withdrawing?

No. A consumer can withdraw from a distance contract without giving any reason. You may include a reason field in the form, but only as optional.

How quickly must I refund after a withdrawal?

Without undue delay and no later than 14 days after receiving the withdrawal, including the cheapest standard delivery costs. Use the same payment method, unless the consumer has expressly agreed to another one and incurs no fees as a result. For goods, you may withhold the refund until you receive the goods or proof they were sent.

What happens if the customer was not informed of the right of withdrawal?

The withdrawal period is extended by one year from the end of the original 14-day period. If you provide the information within that year, the consumer has 14 days from receiving it. The consumer is also not liable for diminished value of the goods. Separately: if you did not state the return shipping costs before the contract, the consumer does not have to pay them.

How do I record a withdrawal in the accounts?

If the sale is cancelled and money refunded, document it with a correction document linked to the original transaction, normally a credit note if a VAT invoice was issued. If VAT was charged on the original sale, reduce the output VAT accordingly. For OSS sales, corrections to earlier periods go in the "Corrections" section of a later OSS return.

Conclusion

The withdrawal button does not change consumer rights, but it changes how easy they are to use. Sellers must make withdrawing straightforward and make the time of every withdrawal provable. Most of the work is technical (button, form, acknowledgement email) and legal (updated terms). Do not forget the accounting side, though: every withdrawal that cancels a sale and leads to a refund must end up as a correction document and, where applicable, in the VAT return.

Since the rules have applied since 25 September 2026, start by checking your existing shop against the checklist above, and then agree with your accountant on how refunds will be recorded.

Related articles

See also: e-commerce accounting in Latvia, invoice requirements and credit notes, VAT registration in Latvia and digital accounting and e-invoicing.

Legal sources and references

• Cabinet Regulation No. 562 of 22 September 2026 amending Regulation No. 255 "Regulations on Distance Contracts"

• Cabinet Regulation No. 255 of 20 May 2014 "Regulations on Distance Contracts" (consolidated version)

• Cabinet Regulation No. 561 of 22 September 2026 "Regulations on Distance Contracts for Financial Services"

• Cabinet Regulation No. 302 of 27 May 2025 amending Regulation No. 255 "Regulations on Distance Contracts" (in force from 27 September 2026)

• Consumer Rights Protection Law, Articles 4.³, 10 and 12

• Accounting Law, Article 11

• VID: special VAT schemes (OSS/IOSS), corrections to returns

• "Latvijas Vēstnesis", 24 September 2026, No. 184 (official publication)

• Directive (EU) 2023/2673

Need help recording refunds and credit notes or handling VAT corrections for your e-shop? Get in touch and we will help set up a process so that every withdrawal ends up correctly in your books and VAT return. Learn more about our accounting services.

Last updated: September 2026. Based on Cabinet Regulations No. 255, No. 302, No. 561 and No. 562 and the Consumer Rights Protection Law as in force on 25 September 2026. This article is general guidance and does not replace individual legal or accounting advice. We recommend checking that the withdrawal function on your specific platform is compliant with its developer or a lawyer.