Discussions on Mongolian data protection bill

The Mongolian legislation on the protection of personal data is currently limited to two laws: the Law on Personal Secrets and the Law on Organisational Secrets, both enacted in 1995. The provisions are considered vague, ambiguous and insufficient, which makes them rarely used in practice. This leads to the lack of interpretation and application. Therefore, the not well developed data protection legislation requires systematic and consistent reforms in order to meet the various societal challenges and to comply with international standards.

Within the framework of the “Action Plan of the Government of Mongolia for 2020-2021” a draft law on the protection of personal data is in the process of being approved. In this regard, the parliament of Mongolia, the State Great Khural, has recently announced discussions on several draft laws. They include the Law on Public Information, the Law on Protection of Personal Data, the Law on Cyber ​​Security, and the Law on Electronic Signatures.

The discussions were jointly held by the Standing Committee on Innovation and e-Policy and the Standing Committee on Legal Affairs on August 10th, 2021. Now, the Mongolian government is responsible for preparing the revised drafts.

The draft Law on Protection of Personal Data aims to regulate relations with regard to the collection, processing, and use of personal data as well as to ensure their security. It outlines rights and obligations of data processors and controllers, contains data subject rights and includes provisions for international data transfers.

The bill is an important step towards alignment with international data protection standards. If passed, the law will come into force on November 1st, 2021.