§ EU AI Act · Article 46
AI Act Article 46: Obligations, Deadlines & Penalties
At a glance
Article 46 of the AI Act imposes 9 obligations on Commission, law-enforcement authorities or civil protection authorities, market surveillance authority. At least one obligation carries an explicit compliance deadline.
§ Obligations
All obligations under Article 46
Obligation 1
Market surveillance authorities may authorize the placing on the market or putting into service of specific high-risk AI systems for a limited period while conformity assessment procedures are carried out, provided there are exceptional reasons of public security, protection of life and health, environmental protection, or protection of key assets.
Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, Article 46, Article 46
- Obligated entity
-
market surveillance authority
- Action required
-
authorize
- Deadline
-
limited period while conformity assessment procedures are being carried out
- Penalty
-
—
Obligation 2
Market surveillance authorities must ensure that the completion of conformity assessment procedures for authorized high-risk AI systems is undertaken without undue delay.
Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, Article 46, Article 46
- Obligated entity
-
market surveillance authority
- Action required
-
complete
- Deadline
-
without undue delay
- Penalty
-
—
Obligation 3
Law-enforcement or civil protection authorities may put a specific high-risk AI system into service without prior authorization in situations of urgency or imminent threat, provided they request authorization during or after use without undue delay.
Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, Article 46, Article 46
- Obligated entity
-
law-enforcement authorities or civil protection authorities
- Action required
-
request
- Deadline
-
without undue delay
- Penalty
-
—
Obligation 4
If authorization for a high-risk AI system used under urgency is refused, the use of the system must be stopped with immediate effect and all results and outputs must be immediately discarded.
Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, Article 46, Article 46
- Obligated entity
-
law-enforcement authorities or civil protection authorities
- Action required
-
stop
- Deadline
-
immediate effect
- Penalty
-
—
Obligation 5
Market surveillance authorities must inform the Commission and other Member States of any authorization issued for high-risk AI systems, excluding sensitive operational data related to law-enforcement activities.
Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, Article 46, Article 46
- Obligated entity
-
market surveillance authority
- Action required
-
inform
- Deadline
-
—
- Penalty
-
—
- Exemptions
- sensitive operational data in relation to the activities of law-enforcement authorities
Obligation 6
The Commission must enter into consultations with the relevant Member State without delay if objections are raised by a Member State or if the Commission considers the authorization contrary to Union law.
Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, Article 46, Article 46
- Obligated entity
-
Commission
- Action required
-
consult
- Deadline
-
without delay
- Penalty
-
—
Obligation 7
The Commission must consult the operators concerned and allow them to present their views during the consultation process regarding objections to an authorization.
Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, Article 46, Article 46
- Obligated entity
-
Commission
- Action required
-
consult
- Deadline
-
—
- Penalty
-
—
Obligation 8
The Commission must decide whether the authorization is justified and address its decision to the Member State concerned and the relevant operators.
Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, Article 46, Article 46
- Obligated entity
-
Commission
- Action required
-
decide
- Deadline
-
—
- Penalty
-
—
Obligation 9
If the Commission considers the authorization unjustified, the market surveillance authority of the Member State concerned must withdraw the authorization.
Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, Article 46, Article 46
- Obligated entity
-
market surveillance authority
- Action required
-
withdraw
- Deadline
-
—
- Penalty
-
—
§ Deadlines
EU AI Act compliance deadlines
-
2025-02-02
Article 5 prohibitions (unacceptable risk)
in_force
-
2025-02-02
Article 4 AI literacy
in_force
-
2025-08-02
GPAI model obligations (Articles 51 to 56)
in_force
-
2026-07-27
Regulation (EU) 2026/1744 (Digital Omnibus on AI) enters into force — AI Act applies as amended
in_force
-
2026-08-02
AI Act general date of application (Art 113) — governance, penalties and remaining provisions without a different date
in_force
-
2026-08-02
Article 50 transparency obligations (AI-interaction disclosure, labelling of deepfakes and AI-generated text, emotion-recognition notices)
in_force
-
2026-12-02
Article 50(2) machine-readable marking of AI-generated content — transition for generative AI systems placed on the market before 2 August 2026
scheduled
-
2026-12-02
NEW Article 5 prohibition: AI generation of non-consensual intimate imagery (NCII) and CSAM
scheduled
-
2027-08-02
National AI regulatory sandboxes: at least one operational per Member State (Art 57(1))
scheduled
-
2027-12-02
Annex III stand-alone high-risk obligations
scheduled
-
2028-08-02
Annex I embedded (regulated-product) high-risk obligations
scheduled
§ Frequently asked
Questions about Article 46
Who must comply with Article 46 of the AI Act?
+
Commission, law-enforcement authorities or civil protection authorities, market surveillance authority.
What does Article 46 of the AI Act require?
+
authorize complete request
What is the compliance deadline for AI Act Article 46?
+
immediate effect; limited period while conformity assessment procedures are being carried out; without delay; without undue delay