Regulation (EU) 2016/679 - General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

What it is, what happened, who decided, what is being done, where to act. · updated 2026-09-02 · Ask about this act →

What it is

Subject-matter and objectives 1. This Regulation lays down rules relating to the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and rules relating to the free movement of personal data. 2. This Regulation protects fundamental rights and freedoms of natural persons and in particular their right to the protection of personal data. 3. The free movement of personal data within the Union shall be neither restricted nor prohibited for reasons connected with the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data.

Article 1 of the act, verbatim Article 1
99
articles
8
languages
5
preparatory documents
479
public submissions

Who decided what, and when

2012-01-25
European Commission
Tabled the proposal — 52012PC0011
Local copyofficial source
2012-01-25
European Commission services
Published the impact assessment — 52012SC0072
Local copyofficial source
2012-01-25
European Commission services
Published the impact assessment — 52012SC0073
Local copyofficial source
2016-04-27
Parliament and Council
The act was adopted and published in the Official Journal.
EUR-Lex
date not recorded
European Parliament committee
Tabled the committee report — A-7-2013-0402
Local copyofficial source
date not recorded
European Parliament committee
Tabled the committee report — A-8-2016-0139
Local copyofficial source

Every record: lobbyists, meetings, amendments, votes → · All preparatory documents →

What is being done now

2025-05-21pending
A proposal to amend this act has been tabled — as regards the extension of certain mitigating measures available for small and medium sized enterprises to small mid-cap enterprises and further simplification measures. Not yet law.
The proposal (EUR-Lex)
2025-11-19pending
A proposal to amend this act has been tabled — as regards the simplification of the digital legislative framework, and repealing Regulations (EU) 2018/1807, (EU) 2019/1150, (EU) 2022/868, and Directive (EU) 2019/1024 (Digital Omnibus). Not yet law.
The proposal (EUR-Lex)

Where you can act

  1. Your MEPs
    They vote on changes to this act. The list is below; each EP profile carries a contact form and an e-mail address.
  2. What has already been said
    We hold 479 public submissions on this act — read them before writing your own.
  3. European Commission public consultations
    Every initiative implementing or amending this act goes out for public consultation; anyone may file, entries are published, and the Commission must summarise them.
  4. European Parliament Petitions Committee (PETI)
    Any EU resident may petition about the application of an EU act; the committee must examine it.

Who represents you in the European Parliament

Current term (since 2024-07)

MemberGroup
Vytenis Povilas ANDRIUKAITISS&DEP profile ↗
Petras AUŠTREVIČIUSRenewEP profile ↗
Vilija BLINKEVIČIŪTĖS&DEP profile ↗
Petras GRAŽULISESNEP profile ↗
Rasa JUKNEVIČIENĖPPEEP profile ↗
Liudas MAŽYLISPPEEP profile ↗
Paulius SAUDARGASPPEEP profile ↗
Virginijus SINKEVIČIUSVerts/ALEEP profile ↗
Waldemar TOMASZEWSKIECREP profile ↗
Aurelijus VERYGAECREP profile ↗
Dainius ŽALIMASRenewEP profile ↗

What Lithuania said about the proposal

A Seimas specialised committee's conclusion on the Commission proposal: it names the ministry that drafted the national position, the committee's opinion and the arguments behind it. This document series ends in 2016.

DocumentRegistered
ES-12-46Specializuoto komiteto išvada dėl pasiūlymo dėl Europos parlamento ir Tarybos reglamento dėl asmenų apsaugos tvarkant asmens duomenis ir laisvo tokių duomenų judėjimo (bendrasis duomenų apsaugos reglamentas) (ES-12-46) .2012-03-28
ES-12-44/ESpecializuoto komiteto išvada dėl Europos Komisijos pasiūlymo dėl Europos parlamento ir Tarybos reglamento dėl asmenų apsaugos tvarkant asmens duomenis ir laisvo tokių duomenų judėjimo (toliau - reglamentas) projekto ir 2012-04-04

The national layer

How many of each country's own laws in our corpora rest on this act — a measure of size, not a transposition score.

5 183
Lithuania
620
Estonia
240
Sweden
220
Italy
48
Slovenia
5
Latvia

How each country transposed it →