Current position
The EU AI Act — Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 — is the European Union’s base comprehensive AI regulation. It establishes a risk-based framework governing the development, deployment and use of AI systems across all 27 EU member states. Adopted on 13 June 2024 and published in the Official Journal on 12 July 2024, it entered into force on 1 August 2024. It remains the base instrument and provides for phased application through to 2030.
Article 4 AI-literacy obligations and the Article 5 prohibitions on specified unacceptable-risk AI practices applied from 2 February 2025 under Regulation (EU) 2024/1689.
Obligations for providers of general-purpose AI models and the relevant governance provisions applied from 2 August 2025. The voluntary GPAI Code of Practice supports providers in demonstrating compliance.
Article 50 transparency obligations for new AI systems apply from 2 August 2026.
Under Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 as originally adopted, the relevant Chapter III requirements generally applied from 2 August 2026 to high-risk systems classified under Article 6(2) and Annex III, while Article 6(1) and the corresponding obligations for Annex I product-related systems applied from 2 August 2027. Regulation (EU) 2026/1744 amended those dates to 2 December 2027 and 2 August 2028 respectively.
Penalties under the EU AI Act include fines of up to 7% of worldwide annual turnover for infringements concerning prohibited AI practices.
Institutions
Established within the European Commission, the European AI Office develops Union expertise and capabilities in AI, supports implementation of the AI Act and exercises the Commission’s supervisory and enforcement responsibilities for general-purpose AI models.
Composed of one representative from each Member State, the AI Board advises and assists the Commission and Member States, coordinates national competent authorities and supports the consistent and effective application of the AI Act. It is not an enforcement authority for individual cases.
The Scientific Panel advises and supports the AI Office on implementation and enforcement concerning general-purpose AI models and systems, including systemic-risk alerts, evaluation methods and classification advice. Its experts may also support national market-surveillance authorities on request; the Panel does not independently exercise binding enforcement powers.
The Advisory Forum provides technical expertise and non-binding advice to the European Commission and AI Board through a balanced membership drawn from industry, start-ups, SMEs, civil society and academia.
Each Member State must designate at least one notifying authority and at least one market-surveillance authority. Market-surveillance authorities supervise and enforce applicable AI Act rules, while notifying authorities oversee the designation and monitoring of conformity-assessment bodies. The Commission’s evolving single-point-of-contact list does not consolidate every notifying and market-surveillance authority, and some national designations remain pending. Complete country-level status must be checked against the relevant national designation instruments.
The current legal position is Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 as amended by Regulation (EU) 2026/1744.
The Digital Omnibus on AI completed the legislative process in 2026. A provisional political agreement was reached on 7 May 2026, confirmed by COREPER on 13 May 2026 and approved by the European Parliament in plenary on 16 June 2026 by 423 votes to 57, with 174 abstentions. The Council adopted the measure on 29 June 2026. Regulation (EU) 2026/1744 was adopted on 8 July 2026, published in the Official Journal on 24 July 2026 and entered into force on 27 July 2026.
Regulation (EU) 2026/1744 is an amending regulation. It does not replace or supersede Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 as the base EU AI Act.
Under Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 as originally adopted, the relevant Chapter III requirements generally applied from 2 August 2026 to high-risk systems classified under Article 6(2) and Annex III, while Article 6(1) and the corresponding obligations for Annex I product-related systems applied from 2 August 2027.
Regulation (EU) 2026/1744 amended those dates:
The 2026 amendment also moved the Article 57 regulatory-sandbox deadline from 2 August 2026 to 2 August 2027. These amended dates are enacted law rather than a provisional agreement.
Article 50 transparency obligations for new AI systems apply from 2 August 2026. These include chatbot disclosure, synthetic-content marking by providers, emotion-recognition and biometric-categorisation notices by deployers, and disclosure concerning deepfakes and AI-generated public-interest text.
The Commission published the Code of Practice on the marking and labelling of AI-generated content on 10 June 2026. The detailed Code of Practice is voluntary and supports providers in demonstrating compliance with Article 50; the Article 50 obligations apply from 2 August 2026. Regulation (EU) 2026/1744 amended the high-risk timetable but does not remove that Article 50 application stage.
Regulation (EU) 2026/1744 introduces two further obligations applying from 2 December 2026:
Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 was adopted on 13 June 2024, published on 12 July 2024 and entered into force on 1 August 2024. Article 4 AI-literacy obligations and the Article 5 prohibitions on specified unacceptable-risk AI practices applied from 2 February 2025. Obligations for providers of general-purpose AI models and the relevant governance provisions applied from 2 August 2025.
In 2026, the Digital Omnibus legislative process resulted in Regulation (EU) 2026/1744. The amending regulation entered into force on 27 July 2026. Article 50 transparency obligations under the base EU AI Act apply from 2 August 2026. The amended application dates are 2 December 2027 for Article 6(2)/Annex III systems and 2 August 2028 for Article 6(1)/Annex I product-related systems.
In its implementation update, the Commission explained that final guidelines on the practical application of Article 6 were not published by the 2 February 2026 deadline. The Commission’s guidelines on high-risk AI systems remain draft and non-binding.
The targeted consultation on the draft high-risk classification guidelines closed on 23 July 2026. Final guidelines are expected by the end of 2026; final adoption has not been asserted.
The Commission’s AI Act standardisation page explains the ongoing development of standards supporting implementation of the AI Act. European standards remain voluntary.
Under Article 40 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, harmonised standards whose references are published in the Official Journal confer a presumption of conformity with the requirements they cover. Draft standards do not themselves confer that presumption.
Member States were required by Article 70 of the AI Act to establish or designate at least one notifying authority and at least one market-surveillance authority, and to notify a market-surveillance authority serving as their single point of contact by 2 August 2025. The Commission publishes an evolving list of market-surveillance single points of contact. Entries marked pending are not final designations, and the list is not a complete directory of every notifying and market-surveillance authority. Complete country-level status still requires verification against the relevant national designation instruments and official national sources.
EU AI Act
Regulatory developments
Latest event import:
Updates sourced from Digital Policy Alert ↗. Recent activity from the last three months.
International declaration endorsed
Source: Digital Policy Alert
The European Commission joined an international political declaration calling for stronger frontier-AI oversight. The statement is non-binding, not EU legislation, and does not establish endorsement by every EU member state. The shared instrument is catalogued separately in the International instruments collection.
Public consultation opened
Source: Digital Policy Alert
The European Commission opened a consultation on minimum performance standards for data centres, including energy efficiency, water use and waste-heat reuse. Responses are due by 14 December 2026. The consultation supports preparation of a legislative proposal provisionally planned for Q2 2027; the proposed standards are not enacted.
Delegated regulation adopted
Source: Digital Policy Alert
The European Commission adopted a delegated regulation establishing a common data-centre sustainability rating scheme. The text provides for electronic labels by 15 August 2027 and operator disclosure obligations. Entry into force remains unverified and depends on Official Journal publication following scrutiny. The measure covers data centres generally and does not amend the AI Act.
Showing 3 of 3 available API entries. Dates and summaries are supplied by Digital Policy Alert.