Editor’s Note
**Editor’s Note:** The EU has levied a record €550 million fine on AliExpress for failing to curb the sale of non-compliant cosmetics and unsafe toys, underscoring heightened regulatory scrutiny on e-commerce platforms.
The European Union imposed a fine of €550 million (approximately $630 million) on the AliExpress platform on Monday, July 20, 2026, after concluding that it allowed the display and sale of products violating EU laws, including unsafe toys and cosmetics that do not meet safety standards.
According to the AFP news agency, the EU stated that the platform did not take sufficient measures to curb the trade of counterfeit and illegal goods, noting that a large number of these products remained available for sale online for weeks, despite being flagged as non-compliant by the platform itself.
This decision followed an investigation launched by the EU in March 2024, which concluded that some products offered on AliExpress do not comply with the safety and environmental standards adopted within the bloc.
This is the largest fine imposed to date under the European Digital Services Act, which came into effect in 2022 and aims to tighten oversight of major technology companies and digital platforms, compelling them to combat illegal content and products.
For its part, AliExpress considered the penalty “disproportionate” and, in its view, does not reflect the improvements it has made to its monitoring systems, stating that it is reviewing all available options to respond to the decision.
The EU clarified that the fine amount was determined based on the nature of the violations, their impact on European consumers, and their duration, while emphasizing that its actions are based on respect for EU laws and are not related to the country of origin of the digital platforms.