Update EU-U.S. Privacy Shield: Article 31 needs more time to consider the implications of the proposal

23. May 2016

On the 19th May, the Article 31 Committee, made up of representatives of the EU Member States, met in order to discuss the implications of the proposed draft of the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield. The Article 31 was created in order to reach decisions that require the approval of the EU Member States according to the Data Protection Directive 95/46/EC. This is the case, for example of the adoption of adequacy decisions, such as Safe Harbor in the past or the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield currently.

Article 31 concluded that it needed more time to reach a decision about the proposal. Moreover, a source of the Commission affirmed that further meetings in May and early June will take place. Also, the recommendations of the Article 29 WP are being taken into consideration before reaching a decision.

The decision of the Article 31 is expected by the end of June. The EU-U.S. Privacy Shield can be only adopted if a qualified majority of 16 Member States representing 65 percent of the EU population votes for the adoption of the Privacy Shield.

Until a decision is reached, Standard Contractual Clauses and Binding Corporate Rules can still be used to carry out international data transfers on a legal basis.