Will EU member states agree their position on the Digital Omnibus for the GDPR and Data Act by December 31, 2026?

The AI part of the EU's Digital Omnibus became law in July, delaying high-risk AI rules to December 2027. The data part, which would simplify the GDPR and the Data Act, is stuck: a planned vote by EU ambassadors on October 11 never happened after objections from Germany and France.

How this question entered the record and how it will be resolved.

Resolution criteria

Resolves Yes if, on or before December 31, 2026, the Council of the EU (Coreper or a Council configuration) agrees its negotiating mandate or general approach on the Digital Omnibus proposal amending the GDPR and the Data Act, as announced on consilium.europa.eu. Resolves No otherwise.

Expected resolution

Dec 31, 2026

• Agence Europe, October 12, 2026: Coreper vote planned for October 11 was not held; Berlin has reservations on trade secrets
• European Parliament legislative train: Digital Omnibus on AI published in the Official Journal on July 24, 2026

Germany still wants trade secret protections written into the Data Act part, and the Irish presidency may run out of time before the holiday break.

• A revised Irish presidency compromise
• Franco-German agreement on trade secrets
• Pressure from industry for faster simplification