Charities will be exempt from major new rules designed to clamp down on misleading and unwanted subscription practices, the government has confirmed.

The new measures, announced on 2 April and due to come into force in spring 2027, form part of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCCA). The reforms aim to protect consumers from so‑called “subscription traps”, including unclear sign‑ups, silent autorenewals and complex cancellation processes. Ministers say the changes will save households an estimated £400 million a year.

However, after sustained lobbying from sector bodies, the government has confirmed that charitable, cultural and heritage memberships will not fall under the new regime. Officials acknowledged the “unique role” these organisations play in stewarding public heritage, culture and conservation, and accepted that applying commercial subscription rules could unintentionally harm charities’ ability to raise funds.

The exemption covers organisations whose memberships primarily support charitable purposes, ensuring they will not be required to adopt the new cancellation pathways, reminder requirements or renewal‑cooling‑off rules that commercial providers must implement.

Sector leaders welcome decision
The Chartered Institute of Fundraising (CIoF), which has been working with government for more than 18 months on this issue, said the exemption would prevent disproportionate administrative burdens and protect frontline charitable activities.

Claire Stanley, director of policy & communications at the CIoF, said: “We welcome the government’s announcement that many cultural, heritage and conservation charities operating membership subscriptions will be exempt from the scope of the DMCCA.
We have been calling for this since 2023, and this solution ensures charities are not negatively impacted.

“Whilst we have always been clear that we support the DMCCA’s overall objective to strengthen consumer protection across the subscriptions landscape, we were concerned that the new regime did not account for the cross-cutting regulations and legislations that charities already adhere to. As such, many of the provisions introduced in the Act would have disproportionately impacted charities and potentially forced affected organisations to divert funds away from their programmes and services. This would not only have hampered charities’ abilities to provide public benefit but also disadvantage supporters who want to see their money go towards making a positive difference.

“We await further detail from government on any guidance around this for the sector.”

---