The implementation of the EU Digital Services Act (DSA) has triggered unprecedented scrutiny across online marketplaces and platforms in 2025, particularly for CBD and so-called ‘neo‑cannabinoid’ products. The new compliance regime is redefining risk, responsibility, and operational strategies for both platform operators and cannabinoid product sellers. With the DSA’s expanded enforcement—especially for Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs)—2025 is witnessing a sweeping clean-up of non-compliant, unverified, or legally borderline product listings across the EU.
What’s New: DSA Enforcement & Online Marketplace Obligations
The Digital Services Act (Official DSA Portal) establishes a harmonized set of due diligence, notice-and-action, and transparency obligations for digital intermediaries, including e-commerce marketplaces and social platforms. Key highlights for 2025 include:
- Rapid notice-and-action: Marketplaces must swiftly remove or disable illegal content—including products deemed unlawful in any specific Member State—upon receiving a properly substantiated notice.
- Proactive risk assessment and mitigation: VLOPs are now required to run advanced risk-mapping, identifying categories (like CBD and novel cannabinoids) most likely to generate regulatory complaints and product safety incidents.
- Seller verification and traceability: Platforms must implement robust trader verification systems, mandating clear identification and contact details—including an in-EU legal representative for non-EU sellers.
- Advertising transparency: Promotions for cannabinoid products require disclosure of payer and targeting parameters, in line with the DSA’s transparency rules.
- Enforcement deadlines: By January 2025, all affected platforms were required to have full DSA systems in place, with ongoing risk reports due throughout the year (source).
CBD and Neo‑Cannabinoid Products: Fragmented Legal Frameworks Across the EU
Unlike conventional consumer goods, CBD and emerging cannabinoid products face uneven legal treatment at the national level. Major factors at play:
- Novel foods status: EU-wide, ingestible CBD remains subject to Novel Foods authorization. Most Member States bar sales of food supplements and edibles containing unapproved cannabinoids (recent EUCRIM summary).
- Local bans and restrictions: Some countries block certain ‘neo‑cannabinoids’ (e.g., HHC, THCP) via controlled substances or consumer safety laws. Platforms must geo-fence or block listings that would be illegal in target Member States.
- National enforcement divergence: Regulatory attitudes vary—from robust national implementation and regular sweep actions (e.g., France, Austria) to inconsistent or slow-moving enforcement (e.g., Spain, Czechia).
For marketplaces and sellers, this means a listing may be legal in Germany (where topical CBD is tolerated) but prohibited in Hungary or Denmark, dramatically impacting compliance strategy.
With DSA fines potentially reaching 6% of global turnover, both platforms and CBD/neo-cannabinoid sellers are under pressure to adopt defensive compliance playbooks.
1. Trader Verification & In-EU Representation
- Sellers must supply documented business identity, address, and—if operating from outside the EU—name an official legal representative in the Union.
- Expect third-party marketplaces to suspend or ban listings from traders unwilling or unable to provide traceability evidence.
2. Product Evidence: Certificates & Documents
- Listings increasingly require supporting documents, including Certificates of Analysis (COA), ingredient breakdown, and (for ingestibles) proof of Novel Foods application/approval.
- Platforms may demand uploads of batch COAs and documentation of lawful sourcing.
3. Real-Time Notice-and-Action Readiness
- With rapid takedown mechanisms mandated, sellers must be ready to respond instantly to product safety complaints or regulator notices.
- Unexplained or generic denials increase risk of delisting and potential blacklisting from marketplaces.
4. Member-State-Specific Controls
- Sellers must geo-target listings, blocking availability in countries where products are restricted.
- Platforms deploying smart regulatory APIs will edge out competitors by minimizing exposure to cross-border legal conflict.
5. Appeals & Transparency for Removed Listings
- The DSA creates a right to contest product removals. Sellers should prepare evidence portfolios (COAs, compliance certificates, legal opinions) to support rapid appeals and reinstate lawful products.
- Document your internal compliance policies and be prepared to submit them upon request.
- Platforms and sellers must disclose the identity of parties responsible for cannabinoid product ads, and ensure ad targeting avoids groups (e.g., minors) forbidden by local or EU law.
- Failure to comply with ad transparency rules may trigger removal of both ads and linked listings.
Case Study: Real-World DSA Marketplace Clean-Ups
Analysis of enforcement trends in early 2025 (see CannabisRegulations.ai round-up) shows:
- Major VLOPs (including Amazon Europe, eBay, and specialty supplement platforms) have delisted thousands of CBD/neo-cannabinoid listings that lacked local regulatory clearance or full traceability documentation.
- Intense regulatory sweeps in France and Italy have targeted sales of HHC, THCH, and similar compounds, driving marketplace and seller adaptation.
- Multiple brands have successfully used the DSA’s appeal rights—backed by robust compliance evidence—to reinstate topical CBD and compliant vaporizer listings.
- Non-EU sellers relying on shell companies or drop-shipping saw near-blanket removals due to failed trader verification.
Compliance Takeaways for 2025
For platforms: Deploy automated notice-and-action interfaces, strengthen seller onboarding with rigorous verification, and monitor national legal changes. Develop procedures that allow for country-specific geoblocking and warning banners.
For sellers: Prove your legitimacy, invest in documentation, and keep legal representation in the EU updated. Maintain separate listings and marketing collateral for each Member State market, reflecting local regulatory realities.
For consumers: Increased safety and transparency, but greater risk of sudden product unavailability as platforms respond to dynamic legal maps.
Conclusion: Dynamic Compliance in a Patchwork Market
With DSA enforcement accelerating and regulators handing out provisional fines and warning notices, the stakes for compliance have never been higher. Businesses must operate with all the agility of a regulatory intelligence hub, monitoring legal update feeds and maintaining well-documented compliance portfolios.
For cannabinoid sellers, the era of ‘list-it-everywhere’ is over. Targeted, compliant, and scrutinized listings—backed by ready evidence and regional expertise—are the only way forward in the post-DSA EU e-commerce space.
Stay ahead of the curve with real-time regulatory updates, compliance insights, and digital compliance tools at CannabisRegulations.ai.
