Starting on January 1, 2016, it is important that online shoppers take note of particular characteristics of certain goods and services provided for sale over the Internet, such as cakes or milk with a short shelf life, customizable T-shirts with the consumer’s image printed on it, e-books, and so forth. If a business operator informs consumers that the 7-day right to cancel an online purchase will be excluded from its product or service, then regulations regarding the 7-day right to cancellation covered under Article 19 of the Consumer Protection Act are no longer applicable. In regard to exceptions to the 7-day right to cancellation, wherein the regulations concern “The Regulations on Reasonable Matters as Exceptions to Rescind the Distance Sales,” the key specifications are as follows:
I.The distance sales of goods and services that fall under the following circumstances, and when business operators inform consumers that the right to cancellation of an online purchase that is not applicable under regulations laid out in Article 19 Paragraph 1 of the Consumer Protection Act, will meet the category of reasonable exceptional circumstances regarding the 7-day right to cancellation:
1.The supply of goods which are liable to deteriorate, with fairly short shelf life, or expire rapidly at the time to rescind the contract;
2.The supply of goods or services made to the consumer’s specifications or clearly personalized;
3.The supply of newspapers, periodicals or magazines;
4.The supply of sealed audio, video recording or computer software which have been unsealed after delivery;
5.The supply of digital content which is not supplied on a tangible medium, or online services which would be fully performed once begun, with the consumer’s prior consent;
6.The supply of sealed personal hygiene products which have been unsealed after delivery;
7.The supply of international airline passenger services.
II.With respect to the Mandatory and Prohibitory Provisions Governing Standard Contracts made public by a competent authority, the rights and the mandatory provisions to rescind the contract have already been in place for many years regarding contractual agreements for tickets to cultural events, highway passenger transport, domestic airline passenger transport, tourism, tourist accommodation reservations, and so forth. The refund mechanism in regard to the mandatory provisions in relevant standard contracts for online consumer transactions regarding tourist itineraries, for transportation tickets and for tickets to cultural events is still applicable.