EU Digital Law Ticker

EU digital law: what applies when?

NIS2, the Cyber Resilience Act, Data Act, DSA, eIDAS, AI Act, the Digital Omnibus … – EU digital law is growing fast. This ticker bundles the key laws with their compliance deadlines and a countdown to the next obligation.

Deadlines hand-verified against EUR-Lex and updated regularly.

Overview13 laws · 7 already fully in force
Next deadline11 September 2026Cyber Resilience Act (CRA)
already appliesupcoming
  1. Cyber Resilience Act (CRA)

    (EU) 2024/2847
    Cybersecurity

    EU-wide cybersecurity requirements for all products with digital elements (hardware and software) across the full lifecycle – with CE marking and vulnerability reporting duties.

    1. 10 December 2024Entry into force
    2. 11 September 2026Reporting obligations (Art. 14) apply
    3. 11 December 2027Main obligations fully apply
  2. Data Act

    (EU) 2023/2854
    Data & platforms

    Governs fair access to and use of data from connected (IoT) products and related services; affects manufacturers, users and cloud providers.

    1. 11 January 2024Entry into force
    2. 12 September 2025Applies from
    3. 12 September 2026Data-access-by-design for new products
  3. AI Act

    (EU) 2024/1689
    AI & liability

    The EU’s first comprehensive AI regulation with a staggered timeline. The high-risk deadlines were postponed by Digital Omnibus Regulation (EU) 2026/1744 – details in the dedicated AI roadmap.

    1. 1 August 2024Entry into force
    2. 2 February 2025Prohibitions + AI literacy apply
    3. 2 August 2025GPAI obligations apply
    4. 2 August 2026Transparency obligations (Art. 50) apply
    5. 2 December 2026New prohibitions (Art. 5(1)(ba)/(bb)) + end of the Art. 50(2) transition
    6. 2 December 2027High-risk obligations for Annex III systems apply
    7. 2 August 2028High-risk obligations for the Annex I product route apply
  4. New Product Liability Directive

    (EU) 2024/2853
    AI & liability

    Modernises EU product liability and, for the first time, explicitly treats software and AI systems as 'products' under strict liability.

    1. 8 December 2024Entry into force
    2. 9 December 2026Transposition deadline – applies to products placed on the market after this date
  5. eIDAS 2.0 – EU Digital Identity (EUDI Wallet)

    (EU) 2024/1183
    Digital identity

    Requires every member state to provide all citizens with a voluntary EU Digital Identity Wallet (EUDI Wallet) by the end of 2026.

    1. 20 May 2024Entry into force
    2. 31 December 2026Member states must provide the EUDI Wallet
  6. European Health Data Space (EHDS)

    (EU) 2025/327
    Data & platforms

    EU-wide access to and exchange of electronic health data – for care (primary use) and research/innovation (secondary use).

    1. 26 March 2025Entry into force
    2. 26 March 2029Core obligations apply (primary & secondary use)
  7. NIS2 Directive

    (EU) 2022/2555
    Cybersecurity

    EU-wide baseline cybersecurity standards (risk management, incident reporting, registration) for medium and large entities across 18 critical and important sectors.

    Germany: the transposition law (NIS2UmsuCG) is in force since 6 Dec 2025 – no transition period, covering ~29,500 entities.

    1. 16 January 2023Entry into force (EU)
    2. 17 October 2024EU transposition deadline
    3. 6 December 2025Germany: NIS2UmsuCG in force
  8. DORA – Digital Operational Resilience Act

    (EU) 2022/2554
    Cybersecurity

    Framework for the financial sector's digital operational resilience: ICT risk management, incident reporting, resilience testing and oversight of ICT third-party providers.

    Directly applicable EU regulation; supervised in Germany by BaFin.

    1. 16 January 2023Entry into force
    2. 17 January 2025Applies from
  9. Cyber Solidarity Act

    (EU) 2025/38
    Cybersecurity

    Strengthens EU-wide detection, preparedness and response to cyber threats – incl. a European alert system (cyber hubs) and an emergency mechanism. Addresses EU/state structures, not individual businesses.

    1. 4 February 2025Entry into force / applies
  10. Data Governance Act

    (EU) 2022/868
    Data & platforms

    Rules for the re-use of protected public-sector data, for data-intermediation services and for data altruism.

    1. 23 June 2022Entry into force
    2. 24 September 2023Applies from
  11. Digital Services Act (DSA)

    (EU) 2022/2065
    Data & platforms

    Obligations for online intermediaries, platforms and marketplaces against illegal content – with stricter duties for very large platforms (VLOPs).

    1. 16 November 2022Entry into force
    2. 17 February 2024General application (all services)
  12. Digital Markets Act (DMA)

    (EU) 2022/1925
    Data & platforms

    Conduct rules for dominant 'gatekeeper' platforms to ensure fair and contestable digital markets.

    1. 1 November 2022Entry into force
    2. 2 May 2023Applies from
    3. 7 March 2024Compliance deadline for designated gatekeepers
  13. Digital Omnibus (simplification package)

    VO (EU) 2026/1744 (KI-Teil)
    Reform / in progress

    Commission simplification package (Nov 2025) in two parts. The AI part is in force as Regulation (EU) 2026/1744 and postpones the AI Act high-risk deadlines. The data-protection/cookie part (GDPR, ePrivacy, NIS2, Data Act) is still only a proposal.

    1. 19 November 2025Commission tables the package (2 proposals)
    2. 6 May 2026Political agreement on the AI part (trilogue)
    3. 16 June 2026European Parliament adopts the AI part (plenary)

    The AI part is done: adopted by the European Parliament on 16 June 2026, published on 24 July 2026 as Regulation (EU) 2026/1744, in force since 27 July 2026. The postponed high-risk deadlines (Annex III → 2 Dec 2027, Annex I → 2 Aug 2028) are therefore enacted law, and Art. 5 has two new prohibitions (from 2 Dec 2026). The 2 August 2026 date for the transparency obligations was expressly not moved. The data-protection/cookie part remains a Commission proposal and may still change significantly.

Sources & status

Last checked: 28 July 2026

Curated overview, not legal advice. Deadlines are verified against EUR-Lex and official EU sources; see the status above. Specific obligations and exceptions follow from each legal act. The AI part of the 'Digital Omnibus' is in force as Regulation (EU) 2026/1744; its data-protection/cookie part is still a proposal – deadlines flagged there may change.

Frequently asked questions

What does the EU Digital Law Ticker show?

The key EU digital and cyber laws with their compliance deadlines – sorted by the next upcoming deadline, with a countdown. From NIS2 to the Cyber Resilience Act to the AI Act and the Digital Omnibus.

Where does the data come from?

The deadlines are hand-verified against EUR-Lex (the EU Official Journal) and official European Commission sources. We curate the list deliberately, because a wrongly stated deadline is worse than none.

What does 'In negotiation' mean for the Digital Omnibus?

The Digital Omnibus is a Commission simplification package. The AI part is done: adopted by the European Parliament on 16 June 2026, published on 24 July 2026 as Regulation (EU) 2026/1744, and in force since 27 July 2026. The data-protection/cookie part is still only a proposal — only that part is still flagged as such here.

Does NIS2 already apply in Germany?

Yes. Germany transposed the NIS2 Directive late but has now done so: the NIS2 transposition law (NIS2UmsuCG) is in force since 6 December 2025 – with no transition period.

Is this legal advice?

No. The ticker is an orientation overview. Which obligations apply specifically to your company is something we're happy to clarify in a conversation.

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