France has started imposing fees on fast fashion items which could reach almost €20 per garment by 2030, as the government tries to curb sales of cheap clothing sold by e-commerce sites.

The levy, which came into force on Tuesday, follows a new law passed in June to regulate so-called “ultra-fast fashion” companies such as Shein, Temu and AliExpress.

The e-commerce giants, known for selling large volumes of cheap apparel, have been criticised by French officials for driving a surge in fast fashion.

China’s commerce ministry has described the French law as discriminatory and a trade barrier, saying it could violate World Trade Organization (WTO) principles.

French minister Mathieu Lefevre said the “harmful effects of ultra-fast fashion” on the environment and economy were “well known”.

In July, Lefevre’s office said the levy would not apply to retailers such as H&M or Zara, prompting some to say that the measure appeared to spare European companies.

Under the legislation, ultra-fast fashion will be determined according to two factors: the volume of clothing placed on the market and the cost of repairing garments relative to their purchase price.

The per-item fee will vary on a set scale according to how each product scores on both these standards.

For 2026, the charges range from a €0.50 (£0.43) levy on underwear to €2 (£1.71) for T-shirts, to €9 (£7.71) for jeans and €12 (£10.28) for a jacket.

The levy could reach up to €19.50 (£16.71/$22.60) per item by 2030, though the cap remains at 50% of the product’s pre-tax price.

The fees come after Shein, a fast fashion retailer founded in China and headquartered in Singapore, was valued at $26.2bn (£19.3bn) on its first day of public trading on the stock market in Hong Kong.

The company was once estimated to be worth nearly $100bn, but has faced heated competition, trade tensions and questions over the ethics of its supply chain.

The BBC has contacted Shein, Temu and AliExpress with a request to comment.

Shein previously told the BBC that the impact of legislation targeting ultra-fast fashion would “worsen the purchasing power of French consumers, at a time when they are already feeling the impact of the cost-of-living crisis”.

Temu, a Chinese-owned e-commerce company, has also been widely criticised by politicians in the UK and US alike.

A spokesperson for Temu previously told the BBC that the brand “acknowledges the important environmental concerns addressed by the proposed French legislation”, and argued that it does not operate as a fast fashion company because it is a marketplace and does not manufacture its own products.