Setting up the withdrawal button in Autorespond (required from 19 June 2026)

From 19 June 2026, as an online seller you are legally required to offer a clear withdrawal button. Consumers must be able to cancel a purchase just as easily as they made it. This article explains how to set that up in practice in your Autorespond environment, with a withdrawal page, a form and two automatic email notifications.

What does the requirement involve? #

The new rules apply to everyone who sells products or services online to consumers (B2C). The core of it: a customer must be able to withdraw from a purchase within the statutory cooling-off period of 14 days, through a clear and easily findable function on your website. A general contact page or a vague returns link is not enough.

The withdrawal button has to be visible throughout the whole cooling-off period, both in the menu and in the footer. The wording must be unambiguous, such as Cancel the contract here or Undo my purchase. You may not require customers to create an account: guest buyers must be able to withdraw as well.

After submitting the withdrawal, the customer must immediately receive a confirmation of receipt stating the date and time. If you do not meet the requirement, the statutory cooling-off period automatically extends to a maximum of 12 months.

The requirement does not apply to B2B sales, purchases in a physical shop, or products without a right of withdrawal (such as custom-made items or hygiene products with a broken seal).

Step 1: create a withdrawal page #

In the dashboard, go to Website → Pages and create a new page. Give the page a clear name, such as Undo my purchase or Submit a withdrawal. Write a short introduction explaining what the customer can do here and within what period (14 days after purchase). Keep it simple and to the point.

Then add the form you create in the next step. Only publish the page once you have set up and tested the form.

Step 2: add the page link to the menu and footer #

The law requires the withdrawal function to be findable throughout the cooling-off period. So add the link to your withdrawal page in two places:

• Menu: go to Website → Website Settings and open the Menus panel. Add the withdrawal page to your main menu or to a separate customer service menu.
• Footer: you can also add the link to the footer of your website, so the button is visible on every page.

Step 3: build the withdrawal form #

Go to Forms → Forms and create a new form. Include the following fields:

• Name: required
• Email address: required
• Order number: required (or product plus purchase date if you do not use order numbers)

Optionally you can add an extra field for the reason for withdrawal. Never make this field required, because the customer does not have to give a reason to exercise their right of withdrawal. A drop-down list of products can also be handy if you have several offers.

Add a required confirmation checkbox with clear wording, for example:

I confirm that I want to withdraw from this contract definitively within the statutory cooling-off period of 14 days.

Finally, change the text on the submit button. Do not use the standard text ‘Submit’, but something like Confirm withdrawal definitively. That way the customer knows exactly what they are doing and you avoid unintended submissions.

Step 4: set up two email notifications #

In the form, go to the email notification settings and set up two notifications:

1. Confirmation of receipt to the customer: send an email to the address the customer entered immediately after submission. State the date and time of the withdrawal in the email. This is a legal requirement. Use a dynamic timestamp through the available field values in the email editor (use the shortcodes for this)
2. Notification to yourself: send an internal notification to your own email address (or that of your customer service team) so that you can follow up the withdrawal.

You can read more about setting up email notifications in forms in Form admin notifications.

Step 5: process the withdrawal manually #

As soon as you receive a withdrawal notification, you process it yourself. There is no obligation to automate this, and manual handling is fine and in most cases safer as well. Think of things like:

• Revoking access to an online course or a restricted area
• Refunding the purchase amount through your payment provider
• Setting the order in your shop to the right status

Extra: excluding the right of withdrawal for digital products with immediate access #

Do you sell digital products or online courses where the customer gets access immediately after the purchase? Then you can exclude the right of withdrawal, but only if the customer explicitly agrees to that at the moment of purchase.

To do that, add a required checkbox during the ordering process, with wording such as:

I agree that delivery starts immediately and that I therefore waive my right of withdrawal.

Without this explicit agreement, the customer keeps the full right of withdrawal, including for digital products. See Adding a required agreement checkbox to the checkout for the technical explanation.