The European Commission Publishes Comprehensive Contractual Clauses For Use In Data Transfers From Europe

In June, the European Commission published the final version of a new set of standard contractual clauses (SCCs) that can be used to comply with the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (the "GDPR"). These clauses are of particular importance to US companies dealing with companies in the European Economic Area (EEA) because the most commonly used alternative to the SCCs had been the EU-US Privacy Shield, which the European Court of Justice invalidated last year.

The new regulations have a phase-in period, when all existing contracts that rely upon the old versions of the SCCs will likely have to be revised. The key dates are 27 September 2021, before which time companies may continue to use the old SCCs; and 27 December 2022, when use of the old SCCs will not be sufficient to comply with the GDPR.