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Using Stripe? What the new UK subscription rules mean for you

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If you bill subscriptions through Stripe, you already have some useful building blocks. This guide sets out, feature by feature, what Stripe does today and what the new UK rules ask for that it does not.

Where things stand (3 November 2026): the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 is law, but its subscription chapter is not yet in force. The detailed regulations are a draft that Parliament has not yet approved, and the government's guidance is also a draft. The intended start date is 1 January 2027, for contracts entered into on or after that date. Anything taken from a draft is labelled "draft".

The short answer

Stripe takes your payments and gives you reminder emails, a customer portal where people can cancel, and space for your own wording at checkout. But the legal duties sit with you, the business your customer has a contract with. The draft government guidance says this even when a third party handles billing.

When we checked Stripe's public documentation on 2 November 2026, we found no feature aimed at the UK subscription rules. The only regulation-driven feature we found documented was for US rules (the FTC and California). Stripe may add features at any time, so check its documentation and your own settings too.

What Stripe does today

Stripe featureWhat it doesHow it fits the UK rules
Upcoming renewal emailsSent a set number of days before each renewal (one setting for the account), for subscriptions that charge automaticallyHelpful, but one fixed timing for everything, and we found no documented way to add the facts a reminder must contain
Trial ending emailSent 7 days before a trial ends (straight away for shorter trials)Covers free trials. Discounts set up as coupons do not get the trial-ending email; at most they get the generic renewal email, which does not say the price is going up
Customer portalCustomers can cancel now or at the end of the period. It asks for a reason by default (after the customer cancels) and can show a retention offer. With the no-code portal link, customers sign in by entering their email and clicking a link Stripe sends them; a portal session opened from your own site or app can skip thatA good basis for online cancellation. Keep any reason optional and any offer light
Checkout custom text and terms tick boxUp to 1,200 characters of your own text near the pay button, and an optional terms of service tick boxSomewhere to put the key information, but you have to write it. By default the tick box is about your terms, not about agreeing to pay; you can change its label
Cancellation emailStripe lists an email sent when a subscription is cancelledIts content and timing are not documented
Email logsCustomer email logs are kept for 60 daysUnder the draft regulations, customers can claim up to 12 months after a missed notice, so you need your own longer record

Where the gaps are

  1. Which payments get a reminder. The law needs a reminder before particular payments: the first after a trial or offer, and the last in each six-month block (section 258). Stripe sends one before every renewal, or none.
  2. The second annual reminder. Annual renewals need an extra, earlier reminder (section 259). We found no documented way to send two.
  3. The end of a discount. A coupon such as "50% off for 3 months" is an introductory offer, so the first full-price payment needs a reminder. Stripe's trial emails do not cover coupons.
  4. The required wording. A reminder must include, among other things, the previous amount, what has been paid since, the least the customer will pay in total and the deadline to cancel (Schedule 23 Part 3). We found no documented way to add these. Send yourself a sample and check it against the list.
  5. Your stated reminder period. Reminders must arrive within the period you promised at sign-up. Stripe's renewal timing is one account-wide setting, and its trial email is fixed at 7 days.
  6. The cooling-off notice. Stripe has nothing equivalent. Receipts are not separate notices and do not contain the required information (section 266).
  7. The cancellation confirmation. It must state the end date and go out within 24 hours of an online cancellation (section 261). Cancellations sent to you by email or phone never reach Stripe at all.
  8. A copy of your terms after sign-up. Stripe sends no email carrying your full contract information (section 257).
  9. Cooling-off refunds. Stripe can refund to the original payment method, but does not track cooling-off periods, work out proportionate amounts or watch the 14-day deadline.
  10. Charging before the period starts. Under draft regulation 37 a rolling subscription renews on the first day of each new period, and section 273 makes a term charging for the renewal before that day of no effect. If you invoice early for the next period, check this.

What to check in your Stripe account

  • Customer emails settings: whether renewal and trial reminder emails are on, and how many days ahead they go.
  • Customer portal: cancellation switched on, the cancellation reason optional, and any retention offer quick to skip.
  • Links: a link to the portal, or your own cancel page, on your website and in every email.
  • Checkout: the key information in the custom text next to the pay button, and wording where the customer acknowledges they will pay.
  • Coupons with a duration: list them. Each one is an introductory offer that needs a reminder and a cooling-off notice when it ends.
  • Annual prices: each renewal needs two reminders and a cooling-off notice.
  • Other billing: subscriptions billed through Apple, Google or another provider are outside Stripe, but the duties are still yours.

Where FairRenew fits

FairRenew was built for this gap. It reads your subscriptions from Stripe with a restricted, read-only key, works out which notices each one needs (including coupon-based offers and annual plans), and sends reminders, early annual reminders, separate cooling-off notices, cancellation confirmations and a copy of your terms, in your business name. It also hosts a simple cancel page and keeps a log of every notice.

It does not build your checkout (it drafts the wording for you), move money or make refunds, handle returns of goods, or cover subscriptions billed outside Stripe. It does not give legal advice.

Common questions

Does Stripe make my subscriptions compliant with the UK DMCC Act?

Not by itself. As of 2 November 2026 we found no Stripe feature aimed at the UK subscription rules. The duties sit with the business the customer contracts with, and Stripe provides building blocks such as reminder emails and the customer portal.

Are Stripe renewal reminder emails enough for the new UK rules?

We found no documented way to add the facts the Act requires in a reminder, such as the minimum total and the cancellation deadline, or to send a second reminder before annual renewals. Send yourself a sample and check it against the required list.

Can I use the Stripe customer portal for online cancellation?

It is a good basis. Keep any cancellation reason optional and any retention offer easy to skip. With the no-code portal link, customers sign in through a link Stripe emails them; whether that step is acceptable is not addressed by the draft guidance. A portal session opened from your own site or app can skip it.

Does Stripe send a cooling-off notice?

No equivalent was found in Stripe documentation. The cooling-off notice must be sent separately from any other information, so a receipt does not do the job.

How long does Stripe keep customer email logs?

Stripe documents that customer email logs are kept for 60 days. Under the draft regulations, customers can bring claims up to 12 months after a missed notice, so keep your own record.

Sources

We link to the law itself wherever we can. Section and regulation links in the text go to legislation.gov.uk.

This is not legal advice. It is a plain-English summary of published rules, several of which are still in draft, written to help small businesses understand them. FairRenew sends notices; it does not give legal advice. Check your own position with a qualified adviser.

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