Data Governance Act — Regulation (EU) 2022/868

Overview

This Regulation establishes a framework to foster data sharing by increasing trust and creating harmonised rules. It lays down conditions for the re-use of certain data held by public sector bodies, a framework for data intermediation services, and rules for entities engaged in data altruism. (Art. 1)

This Regulation applies to the re-use of specific categories of protected data held by public sector bodies, such as data protected by commercial confidentiality, statistical confidentiality, or third-party intellectual property rights. It also applies to providers of data intermediation services and entities voluntarily registering for data altruism activities. (Art. 1 Art. 3 Art. 10 Art. 16)

Key points

• Public sector bodies are prohibited from entering into exclusive agreements for the re-use of data, except where necessary for a service of general interest, and any such exception must not exceed 12 months. (Art. 4)
• Public sector bodies must make the conditions for re-using protected data publicly available. These conditions must be non-discriminatory, transparent, proportionate, and objectively justified. (Art. 5)
• Providers of data intermediation services must notify a competent authority before starting their activity and must operate through a separate legal person, not using the data for any purpose other than making it available to data users. (Art. 11 Art. 12)
• Entities wishing to be recognised as data altruism organisations must apply for registration, operate on a not-for-profit basis, and be functionally separate from for-profit activities. (Art. 18 Art. 19)
• Data holders, re-users, intermediation services, and altruism organisations must take all reasonable measures to prevent the international transfer of or governmental access to non-personal data held in the Union if it would conflict with EU or Member State law. (Art. 31)
• A European Data Innovation Board is established to advise the Commission and Member States on consistent practices for data re-use, data intermediation, and data altruism, and to promote interoperability standards. (Art. 29 Art. 30)

Structure

The Regulation begins with general provisions, including its scope and definitions. Chapter II sets out rules for the re-use of protected data held by public sector bodies, including conditions, fees, and the prohibition of exclusive arrangements. Chapter III establishes a notification and supervisory framework for data intermediation services. Chapter IV creates a voluntary registration scheme for data altruism organisations. Subsequent chapters detail the roles of competent authorities, establish the European Data Innovation Board, set rules for international data transfers, and contain final provisions.

Related instruments

• Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (32016R0679) — This Regulation is without prejudice to the GDPR. The GDPR prevails in case of conflict and applies to any personal data processed under this act.
• Directive (EU) 2019/1024 — This Regulation applies to categories of data held by public sector bodies that fall outside the scope of the Open Data Directive (Directive (EU) 2019/1024).
• Regulation (EU) 2018/1724 — This Regulation amends the Single Digital Gateway Regulation to include procedures for notifying data intermediation services and registering data altruism organisations.