The withdrawal button in WooCommerce: what the law asks for, and how to set it up.

Law 5317/2026 (Government Gazette A 108, 10.7.2026) added a new article, 3za, to Greece’s consumer protection law, law 2251/1994. It covers every distance contract concluded through a website, an eshop or an app, what the law calls an “online interface”. It transposes EU Directive 2023/2673, so the same obligation applies across the European Union.

The article asks for five things. The right-hand column shows what each one means on a WooCommerce eshop:

What art. 3za asks for	What it means in WooCommerce
A withdrawal function labelled “withdraw from contract here” («Πατήστε εδώ για υπαναχώρηση») or something equally clear	A button with that phrase, clearly visible for as long as the customer has the right to withdraw
An online statement with the customer’s name, the contract details and the means for the confirmation	A form with the name, the order number and the email, filled in from the order as far as possible
A separate function labelled “confirm withdrawal” («Επιβεβαίωση υπαναχώρησης»)	A second button at the end of the form, with only that phrase
A receipt on a durable medium, without delay, with what was declared and the date and time	An email that goes out by itself as soon as the customer presses the confirmation
The withdrawal is on time if the customer used the function before the period ended	The exact time is recorded on the order

The function must be available for the whole withdrawal period, clearly visible and easy for the customer to find. A form buried in the terms of use is no longer enough.

Law 5317/2026 applies from its publication, on 10 July 2026. It sets other dates for some of its parts, such as consumer credit, but not for the withdrawal button. The EU directive had set 19 June 2026 as its date of application.

It covers every eshop that sells to consumers, however small: there is no exemption by size. It doesn’t cover sales only to businesses (B2B), or products the law gives no right of withdrawal for, such as goods made to the customer’s specifications.

The withdrawal period is usually 14 calendar days. For goods, it runs from the day the customer received them, not from the day of the order.

WooCommerce already has what you need around withdrawal: the “My account” page with the customer’s orders, the customer emails, order notes, and refunds from the order page in the admin. What it doesn’t have, to date, is a withdrawal button in its core.

So there are two routes: a third-party plugin, or a solution built for your eshop. Whichever you choose, check the points in the sections below, and above all that the phrases on your Greek pages are in Greek, exactly as the law writes them. If the eshop also has English pages, the EU directive’s English wording is “withdraw from contract here” and “confirm withdrawal”.

The customer must find the button easily for as long as the withdrawal period lasts. In WooCommerce, that means three places:

• In the customer’s orders: in the “Orders” list and on each order’s page under “My account”, for orders still within the period.
• In the footer of every page: a “withdraw from contract here” link for people who bought without an account. It leads to a page where the customer enters the order number and their email.
• In the order email: a link that opens the form for that order, with no need to log in.

Hide the button from an order only when you’re sure the period has ended. If the eshop doesn’t know when the parcel was delivered, allow a margin of a few days after the estimated delivery. The footer link always stays.

The form asks only for what the law says: full name, order details and the email address the receipt will go to. If the customer is logged in to their account, you fill these in from the order and they simply check them.

If the order has several products, let them choose which ones they’re returning. You can also ask why, but the question must be optional: withdrawal needs no reason.

At the end of the form goes the second button, with only the phrase “confirm withdrawal” («Επιβεβαίωση υπαναχώρησης»). Avoid extra steps, or a phone call, before the confirmation: the aim of the law is for withdrawing to be as easy as buying.

The form also needs the obvious: it should open properly on a phone, work with a keyboard alone and have real labels on every field. A customer who can’t fill it in will email you instead, and you’ll do the work twice.

As soon as the customer presses “confirm withdrawal”, you send them a receipt on a durable medium. Email counts as a durable medium, so an automatic email from the eshop is enough. It must state:

1. everything the customer declared on the form,
2. the date and time they pressed the confirmation.

Keep the same content on the eshop too, as a note on the order, with the server time. If it’s ever disputed whether the withdrawal was made within the period, that record is your proof.

In WooCommerce it’s handy for the withdrawal email to be one more of the eshop’s emails, so you see it in the settings with the rest, with the same logo and signature. Send a copy to the shop too, so whoever handles returns sees it at once.

The button changes how the customer declares the withdrawal, not the rest. You refund the money without delay and at the latest within 14 days of learning about the withdrawal, by the same means of payment and at no cost to the customer. You may wait until you have the goods back or proof that they were sent, whichever comes first.

In WooCommerce, refunds are made from the order page. If the payment method supports automatic refunds, it takes one click there. With cash on delivery or a bank deposit, you agree the account with the customer and send the money back by bank transfer.

It’s good practice for the withdrawal to change the order’s status by itself, for example to “Withdrawn”, so it stands out in the order list.

The same law also changed the model withdrawal information, so that it says the customer can also withdraw online. Update your terms and your “Returns” page with the new text.

A ready-made plugin is quick to set up and is enough for a simple eshop. Before you keep it, run one withdrawal from start to finish, and another as a guest without an account. Check the phrases, the date and time in the email, and that the form works on a phone and with a keyboard.

A solution built for your eshop is worth it when returns also go through other software. If orders go to your business software (ERP) or to Odoo, the withdrawal has to reach it too, so the credit note can be prepared and the warehouse knows a parcel is coming. See how we connect your eshop to your business software.

1. The phrase: the button says “withdraw from contract here” («Πατήστε εδώ για υπαναχώρηση» on Greek pages) or something equally clear.
2. The places: it shows in the account’s orders, in the footer and in the order email.
3. Without an account: it works for guest buyers too, with the order number and email.
4. The form: it asks for full name, order and email, and the reason is optional.
5. The confirmation: the second button says only “confirm withdrawal” («Επιβεβαίωση υπαναχώρησης»).
6. The receipt: the email goes out at once, with what was declared and the date and time, and a copy stays on the order.
7. The terms: your terms and “Returns” page say that withdrawal can also be made online, with the new model text.
8. The test: you’ve made one withdrawal from a phone and one with a keyboard only.

Whatever else the rules ask of an eshop today, such as cookies, accessibility and the previous price in sales, you’ll find on the page your eshop and the new rules.