Adopted on 02 December 2024 – For public consultation
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Article 48 GDPR provides that: “Any judgment of a court or tribunal and any decision of an administrative authority of a third country requiring a controller or processor to transfer or disclose personal data may only be recognised or enforceable in any manner if based on an international agreement, such as a mutual legal assistance treaty, in force between the requesting third country and the Union or a Member State, without prejudice to other grounds for transfer pursuant to this Chapter”.
The purpose of these guidelines is to clarify the rationale and objective of this article, including its interaction with the other provisions of Chapter V of the GDPR, and to provide practical recommendations for controllers and processors in the EU that may receive requests from third country authorities to disclose or transfer personal data.
The main objective of the provision is to clarify that judgments or decisions from third country authorities cannot automatically and directly be recognised or enforced in an EU Member State, thus underlining the legal sovereignty vis-a-vis third country law. As a general rule, recognition and enforceability of foreign judgements and decisions is ensured by applicable international agreements.
Regardless of whether an applicable international agreement exists, if a controller or processor in the EU receives and answers a request from a third country authority for personal data, such data flow is a transfer under the GDPR and must comply with Article 6 and the provisions of Chapter V.
An international agreement may provide for both a legal basis (under Article 6(1)(c) or 6(1)(e)) and a ground for transfer (under Article 46(2)(a)).
In the absence of an international agreement, or if the agreement does not provide for a legal basis under Article 6(1)(c) or 6(1)(e), other legal bases could be considered. Similarly, if there is no international agreement or the agreement does not provide for appropriate safeguards under Article 46(2)(a), other grounds for transfer could apply, including the derogations in Article 49.
