The European Commission has proposed a six-month extension to the two 2021 adequacy decisions with the United Kingdom for free and safe data flows.
The extension will maintain the free flow of data with the UK until 27 December 2025. This allows time for the legislative process to conclude in the UK. Once concluded, the Commission will assess the new legal framework and decide on its adequacy. In the meantime, the UK data protection rules that were found adequate in 2021 remain in place and continue to apply to data transferred from the EU.
“The adequacy decisions are key to our relationship with the UK,” said the Commissioner for Democracy, Justice, the Rule of Law, and Consumer Protection Michael McGrath: “They ensure data can flow freely and safely, which is crucial for trade, justice, and law enforcement cooperation. Our proposal will allow the Commission to assess whether to renew these decisions based on a stable legal framework, while keeping data flows to the UK uninterrupted.”
The draft extension decisions will now be transmitted to the European Data Protection Board for its opinion, as part of the adoption procedure. Once approved, the extension will be valid until 27 December 2025.
Once the UK’s legislative process on the Data Bill introduced in the UK Parliament on 23 October 2024 concludes, the Commission will assess whether the UK continues to provide an adequate level of protection for personal data. If that assessment is positive, the Commission will propose to renew the UK adequacy decisions.
