On September 14, 2022, the European Commission published a proposal for the Forced Labour Regulation. On March 5, 2024, the European Parliament and the European Council reached a provisional deal on the text of the Forced Labour Regulation. The Parliament approved the Forced Labour Regulation during its April 2024 plenary. The Regulation is expected to be published in the European Journal in the first half of 2024 and would take effect 36 months after its formal publication.

The objective of the Forced Labour Regulation is to prevent products made with forced labour (including forced child labour) from being sold in the EU market or being exported from the EU. This includes products of any type, including their components, from all sectors and