EU Council clears AI Omnibus changes

The Council of the EU has given final approval to the Digital Omnibus on AI, updating the EU’s Artificial Intelligence Act ahead of publication in the Official Journal and entry into force three days later. The changes adjust several compliance deadlines but leave organisations with near-term planning obligations, especially for transparency, governance and product-risk mapping.

Providers of systems generating synthetic audio, image, video or text content that were placed on the market before 2 August 2026 must meet Article 50(2) labelling requirements by 2 December 2026. Systems placed on the market on or after 2 August 2026 must comply from 2 August 2026. The high-risk timetable is also confirmed: 2 December 2027 for stand-alone high-risk systems under Article 6(2) and Annex III, and 2 August 2028 for high-risk systems embedded in products regulated under EU sectoral safety legislation.

From 2 December 2026, Article 5 will prohibit certain AI systems that generate or manipulate realistic intimate material without explicit consent, as well as systems that generate or manipulate child sexual abuse material within the scope of Directive 2011/93/EU, subject to national-law defences. Article 4 keeps AI literacy measures mandatory but does not require organisations to certify individual competence.

Registration remains required for Annex III systems that providers self-assess as not high-risk under Article 6(3), though information demands are simplified. The package also refines rules on sensitive data, reduces duplication with sector-specific legislation, routes Machinery Regulation products through that framework, and gives national authorities until 2 August 2027 to establish at least one AI regulatory sandbox.