The European Commission has fined Chinese online marketplace Temu €200 million for breaching the European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA), accusing the platform of
failing to properly assess and mitigate the risks posed by illegal and unsafe products sold to EU consumers.
In a decision announced Thursday, the Commission said evidence gathered during its investigation showed that EU users were “very likely” to encounter illegal items on Temu’s platform, including unsafe chargers and hazardous children’s toys.
According to the Commission, Temu’s 2024 risk assessment failed to meet DSA standards because it relied on broad industry-wide assumptions rather than evidence specific to its own marketplace and user activity. Regulators said the company significantly underestimated how frequently consumers could be exposed to dangerous or non-compliant goods.
A mystery shopping exercise conducted as part of the investigation found that a large share of tested chargers failed basic safety requirements, while many baby toys contained chemicals above legal limits or posed choking hazards due to detachable parts.
The Commission also criticised Temu for failing to adequately assess how features such as recommendation algorithms and influencer-driven product promotion programmes could contribute to the spread of illegal products.
Under the DSA, Very Large Online Platforms are required to identify and evaluate systemic risks linked to their services and implement measures to reduce them.
EU officials described the failure to conduct proper risk assessments as “a particularly serious infringement” of the bloc’s digital rules. The €200 million fine was determined based on the nature of the violation, the number of affected EU users and the duration of the infringement.
Temu has until 28 August 2026 to submit an action plan detailing how it will address the breaches identified by regulators. The European Board for Digital Services will review the plan before the Commission adopts a final implementation timeline.
The Commission warned that continued non-compliance could result in additional periodic penalty payments.
Brussels first opened formal proceedings against Temu on 31 October 2024, focusing in part on the platform’s handling of illegal products. Preliminary findings were issued in July 2025 before the Commission adopted its final non-compliance decision this week.
The investigation drew on Temu’s internal risk assessment reports, responses to formal information requests, submissions from third parties and independent product testing commissioned by the EU. Authorities also used data from customs and market surveillance agencies, which reportedly showed high levels of non-compliance among products sold on the platform.