Influencer marketing has become a major communication channel — and now a regulated field. Since the law of 9 June 2023, brands and content creators operate within a precise framework: transparency of partnerships, mandatory disclosures, banned or restricted products, written contracts and shared liability. Improvising exposes you to penalties and reputational harm.
As an influencer marketing lawyer in Paris, Maître Léa Scemama advises brands and agencies as well as influencers themselves: drafting compliant contracts, putting in place the required disclosures and managing the legal risks of a campaign. The goal: to communicate effectively without exposure.
A recent and specific legal framework
Law No. 2023-451 of 9 June 2023 is the first text to give a legal definition of commercial influence and of the activity of influencer agent. It came into force in early 2024, then was adjusted at the end of 2024 to comply with EU law. It adds to rules already in place: the ban on misleading advertising, consumer law, and the tax and social obligations of the activity.
The text applies to anyone who, for remuneration or benefit, promotes goods or services to their audience — regardless of follower count. Micro-influencers are therefore concerned just as much as accounts followed by millions.
Transparency: the mandatory disclosures
The central obligation is transparency. The public must be able to identify immediately that a publication is a paid partnership:
- The wording “Publicité” or “Collaboration commerciale” must accompany any commercial content, clearly, legibly and present throughout the promotion
- The wording “Images retouchées” is required where a person’s appearance has been altered by a filter or software
- The wording “Images virtuelles” applies where the visual was created by artificial intelligence
The absence of disclosure on retouched or virtual images is specifically penalised, and a lack of transparency may amount to a misleading commercial practice.
Banned or strictly restricted products
The law bans or tightly restricts the promotion by influencers of certain products and services: transactions in digital assets and risky financial products offered by unauthorised operators, cosmetic surgery and medicine, certain health products and devices, therapeutic abstention, and certain forms of betting. Every campaign must therefore be assessed against the sector concerned.
The firm checks in advance the lawfulness of the planned promotion, to prevent a campaign from turning against the brand and the creator alike.
The collaboration contract
Above a certain threshold, the relationship between the advertiser (or agent) and the influencer must be governed by a written contract, stating in particular the parties’ identity, the nature of the assignments, the remuneration and the reciprocal obligations. Well beyond this requirement, a solid contract remains the best tool to secure a campaign. It is the natural extension of the commercial contracts the firm drafts on a daily basis.
The firm builds in the decisive clauses: scope and exclusivity, publication schedule, content approval, mandatory disclosures, assignment of intellectual property rights in the content, confidentiality, duration and termination conditions.
Shared liability and penalties
The law establishes joint liability of the influencer and the advertiser for harm caused to third parties. In other words, the brand cannot hide behind the creator, nor the reverse: each has an interest in the campaign being beyond reproach. Influencers established outside the EU but targeting a French audience must also appoint a legal representative in the Union and take out insurance.
Enforcement is handled by the DGCCRF, with enhanced powers: orders to remove illicit content, requests to suspend accounts, penalty payments. The most serious breaches, classified as misleading commercial practices, carry heavy penalties.
Support for brands and influencers
The firm acts on both sides of the relationship. For brands and agencies: campaign compliance audits, template contracts, influence policies. For creators: structuring the activity, partnership contracts and protecting their content. In the event of a dispute — unpaid partnership, misused content, harm to image — it handles the defence before the courts and connects with online reputation issues.
Frequently asked questions
Which law governs influencers in France?
Law No. 2023-451 of 9 June 2023 governs commercial influence and tackles influencer misconduct on social networks. In force from early 2024 and adjusted at the end of 2024 to comply with EU law, it defines the activity of influencer and of agent, imposes transparency obligations and provides for penalties.
What disclosures must an influencer display?
Any commercial publication must clearly indicate its advertising nature, through the wording “Publicité” or “Collaboration commerciale”. Images altered by a filter must bear the wording “Images retouchées”, and those generated by artificial intelligence “Images virtuelles”. These disclosures must be legible and visible throughout the promotion.
Is the brand liable for the influencer’s posts?
Yes. The law creates joint liability between the influencer and the advertiser for harm caused to third parties in performing the contract. A brand therefore cannot ignore the content published: it has every interest in framing the campaign contractually and monitoring the compliance of posts.
What penalties apply for non-compliance?
Breaches may be pursued by the DGCCRF, which has enhanced powers (order to remove content, account suspension, penalty payments). Some offences fall under misleading commercial practices, punishable by up to two years’ imprisonment and a €300,000 fine, which may be raised to a percentage of turnover.