CCD2 may affect merchants who let individual EU consumers receive a product or service before completing payment. This article explains which ThriveCart payment arrangements may be affected and the steps you can take before November 20, 2026 to consider your obligations.
Legal disclaimer: This article is for general information only. It is not legal, tax, or financial advice. CCD2 is implemented through national law, so requirements may differ between EU countries. ThriveCart does not provide regulatory compliance advice. Consult qualified legal counsel about your specific arrangements.
Does CCD2 affect your payment plan?
Use the below to classify each payment arrangement you offer to EU consumers.
Your arrangement may need to be assessed under CCD2 if:
- A customer receives a one-time product, course, or service upfront.
- The customer pays over a fixed period after receiving the full product or service.
- The customer receives full access before completing all payments.
- The payment plan is interest-free but continues for longer than a short deferred-payment period.
- A third-party provider offers or purchases the credit.
- You, as the merchant present, arrange, or concludes financing for the customer.
Your arrangement may generally fall outside the definition of a credit agreement if:
- The customer pays for an ongoing service throughout the period it is delivered.
- You, the merchant gives the customer time to pay without a third party offering or purchasing credit.
- The purchase is free of interest and other charges, except limited late-payment charges permitted by national law.
- Payment is completed within 50 days of delivery.
For certain suppliers that are not micro, small, or medium-sized businesses and that offer information society services through distance contracts, the short-payment exclusion may apply only when payment is completed within 14 days.
These exclusions are specific. Do not treat them as a general exemption for all subscriptions or interest-free payment plans.
What should merchants do now?
1. Inventory your EU payment arrangements
List every offer available to individual consumers in the EU, including:
- Split Pay plans
- Fixed-term installment plans
- One-time courses or digital products with immediate access
- Memberships with full access at signup
- Merchant-funded deferred payments
- Third-party financing options
- Plans that can be renewed, extended, or modified
For each plan, record:
- What the customer is buying
- When the customer receives it
- When the customer receives full access or value
- The total price and payment period
- Any interest, fees, or late-payment charges
- What happens if a payment is missed
- Whether a third party provides or purchases the credit
2. Identify who provides the credit
A merchant may be the creditor if it gives or promises to give the customer time to pay as part of its business.
A merchant may be a credit intermediary if, for payment or other financial benefit, it:
- Presents or offers credit agreements
- Performs preparatory or pre-contractual work
- Concludes credit agreements on behalf of a creditor
The finance provider may be the creditor, but you may still be a credit intermediary.
Using a payment processor does not automatically mean the processor is providing credit. Review the actual payment and financing structure.
3. Decide which compliance path applies
If you are not providing credit
Document why the arrangement is outside CCD2. For example, it may be a genuine ongoing subscription or a qualifying short deferred-payment arrangement.
Keep records of:
- The offer structure
- Delivery timing
- Payment terms
- The reason the exclusion applies
- Any legal advice received
Review the arrangement again if it is renewed, extended, or materially changed.
If you, the merchant, are providing credit
Before continuing to offer the arrangement to EU consumers, obtain legal advice on whether you must:
- Register or obtain authorization
- Meet national supervision requirements
- Update credit advertising and marketing
- Provide the Standard European Consumer Credit Information form, known as SECCI
- Provide pre-contractual information on a durable medium
- Complete and document creditworthiness assessments
- Provide compliant credit agreements
- Support the consumer’s 14-day withdrawal right
- Support early repayment and any required reduction in credit cost
- Handle missed payments and financial difficulty
- Maintain complaint and recordkeeping procedures
The European Commission states that creditors must provide standardized information, assess whether consumers can repay sustainably, and respect consumer rights such as withdrawal and early repayment.
If a third party provides the financing
Confirm in writing with the finance provider:
- Whether it is the creditor
- Whether you are a credit intermediary
- Who provides SECCI and other pre-contractual information
- Who completes the creditworthiness assessment
- Who handles withdrawal requests and complaints
- How refunds, cancellations, and product access interact with the credit agreement
- Which countries and products are supported
Do not assume that using a third-party financing option removes all merchant responsibilities.
4. Review your marketing and checkout
If an arrangement is covered credit, review all related:
- Sales pages
- Checkout copy
- Advertisements
- Email campaigns
- Affiliate materials
- Payment-plan descriptions
Credit advertising must be fair, clear, and not misleading. Where advertising includes an interest rate or cost figures, CCD2 requires standardized information, including the APR, total amount of credit, duration, total amount payable, and installment information where applicable. Advertising must also include a prominent warning that borrowing costs money, using the wording required by the directive or applicable national law.
5. Do not assume ThriveCart supplies the required credit workflow
As of publication, ThriveCart does not provide:
- Creditworthiness assessments
- SECCI (Standard European Consumer Credit Information form) generation
- A universal determination of whether a merchant’s payment plan is regulated credit
- A CCD2 compliance workflow
Merchants remain responsible for reviewing their own payment arrangements and obtaining appropriate legal advice.
How does CCD2 affect common ThriveCart arrangements?
One-time course with immediate access and six monthly payments
This arrangement may need to be assessed as consumer credit because the customer receives the complete course before paying in full.
You should determine who is the creditor and whether the required credit processes apply.
Monthly subscription for an ongoing service
This may generally fall outside the definition of a credit agreement when the service is delivered throughout the subscription period and access stops when payments stop.
As the merchant, you should confirm that the customer is paying for ongoing service rather than paying off a completed purchase.
Merchant-funded payment completed within 50 days
This may fall within the short deferred-payment exclusion if:
- No third party offers or purchases the credit
- No interest or other charges apply, apart from permitted late-payment charges
- The customer pays in full within the applicable 50-day period, or 14-day period for certain larger online suppliers
Klarna or another financing provider
The financing provider may be the creditor. You should still assess whether it is presenting or arranging credit and therefore acting as a credit intermediary.
What about plans created before November 20, 2026?
Existing credit agreements generally remain under the previous framework until they end. However, special rules may apply to certain open-ended agreements.
Review any plan that is:
- Renewed
- Extended
- Replaced
- Materially modified
- Changed to increase the payment period or total amount payable
Do not assume that a change to an existing plan is covered by the previous rules.
Main takeaway
CCD2 does not automatically prohibit Split Pay or require every subscription to be treated as credit.
The key distinction is whether the customer receives a completed product or service before paying in full. If so, determine whether you or a third party are providing credit, then review the applicable creditor or intermediary obligations.
Before November 20, 2026:
- Inventory all payment plans offered to EU consumers.
- Identify whether each plan is for an upfront product or an ongoing service.
- Identify the creditor and any credit intermediary.
- Check whether a specific exclusion applies.
- Obtain legal advice for any plan that may be covered credit.
- Confirm that required disclosures, creditworthiness checks, agreements, withdrawal rights, and arrears processes are handled by the responsible party.
- Review all advertising and checkout messaging.
- Document the analysis and review any future changes to the payment plan.
FAQs
- Q: Does every Split Pay plan fall under CCD2?
- A: No. The answer depends on what the customer receives, when they receive it, how long they have to pay, and who provides the credit.
- Q: Does interest-free mean the payment plan is outside CCD2?
- A: No. An interest-free plan may still be credit if the customer receives a one-time product or service before completing payment.
- Q: Is a genuine subscription automatically excluded?
- A: No. A subscription may generally fall outside the definition of credit when the service is delivered throughout the subscription period. The actual structure matters more than the label.
- Q: Does ThriveCart determine whether my payment plan complies with CCD2?
- A: No. ThriveCart provides checkout and billing software. Merchants are responsible for reviewing their arrangements and obtaining qualified legal advice.
- Q: What should I do if I am unsure?
- A: Pause the assumption that the plan is compliant, document how it works, identify the creditor, and consult legal counsel in the relevant EU country or countries.