EU extends UK data adequacy decision through 2031

The European Commission announced a six-year extension of the EU–UK data adequacy decision, allowing personal data to continue flowing freely between the European Union and the United Kingdom until 2031. The move follows a review of the UK’s post-Brexit data protection framework and confirms that UK law remains essentially equivalent to the GDPR.

The extension provides long-term legal certainty for businesses operating across EU–UK borders and avoids the need for additional transfer mechanisms such as standard contractual clauses. At the same time, the Commission emphasized that it will continue to monitor UK data protection developments and retains the power to suspend adequacy if standards diverge.

The decision underscores the importance of regulatory alignment in maintaining cross-border data flows in a fragmented global privacy landscape.