General Terms and Conditions (GTC)
3 min readUpdated
Conclusion of contract, prices, payment, delivery, warranty, and liability — the framework for your shop's GTC.
Where it goes: In Shopify, insert under Settings → Policies → Terms of Service. Shopify then automatically links the text at the checkout.
Template, no legal advice. Legal texts must fit your shop and change with legal changes. Have the finished text checked or use a legal text service (e.g., IT-Recht Kanzlei, Händlerbund, or eRecht24) that keeps it up to date.
11 placeholders in [brackets] to fill in
§ 1 Scope of Application
These General Terms and Conditions apply to all orders via the online shop [SHOP ADDRESS] at [NAME OR COMPANY, ADDRESS] (hereinafter 'we'). A consumer is any natural person who concludes a legal transaction for purposes that can predominantly be attributed neither to their commercial nor their independent professional activity (§ 13 BGB).
§ 2 Conclusion of Contract
The presentation of the products in the shop is not a legally binding offer, but an invitation to order. By clicking on the button '[LABEL, e.g., Order with obligation to pay]', you submit a binding offer to purchase the goods in the shopping cart. The automatic acknowledgment of receipt is not yet an acceptance. The contract is concluded when we confirm the order by email or send the goods.
§ 3 Contract Language and Contract Text
The contract language is [LANGUAGE, e.g., German]. We save the contract text and send you the order data and these GTC by email. [IF AVAILABLE: You can view your orders at any time in your customer account.]
§ 4 Prices and Shipping Costs
All prices are final prices and include the statutory VAT. In addition, there are shipping costs, which are displayed to you on the product page, in the shopping cart, and before completing the order. Details can be found in our shipping policy: [LINK TO SHIPPING POLICY].
§ 5 Payment
You can pay using the following payment methods: [PAYMENT METHODS, e.g., credit card, PayPal, Apple Pay, Klarna]. The purchase price is due upon conclusion of the contract.
§ 6 Delivery
We deliver to the following countries: [DELIVERY COUNTRIES]. The delivery time is stated on the respective product page and in our shipping policy. Items can be shipped from different warehouses and in multiple packages.
§ 7 Retention of Title
The goods remain our property until full payment.
§ 8 Right of Withdrawal
Consumers are entitled to a statutory right of withdrawal. Details can be found in our cancellation policy: [LINK TO CANCELLATION POLICY].
§ 9 Warranty
The statutory liability for defects applies. [IF AVAILABLE: Information on additional guarantees and their conditions can be found with the respective item.]
§ 10 Liability
We are liable without limitation for damages resulting from injury to life, body, or health, in cases of intent and gross negligence, and according to the Product Liability Act. In the event of a slightly negligent breach of a material contractual obligation, liability is limited to the contract-typical, foreseeable damage. Otherwise, liability for slight negligence is excluded.
§ 11 Dispute Resolution
We are not willing or obliged to participate in dispute resolution proceedings before a consumer arbitration board.
§ 12 Final Provisions
The law of the [COUNTRY, e.g., Federal Republic of Germany] applies, excluding the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods. For consumers, this choice of law only applies insofar as they are not deprived of the protection of mandatory provisions of the state in which they have their habitual residence.