EU AI Act Implementation Timeline
Systematic implementation schedule establishing regulatory obligations from August 2024 through August 2026. GPAI model requirements commence August 2, 2025, with full enforcement penalties reaching €35 million. SCIENTIA ET LEX — professional compliance through regulatory precision.
Entry Force
Prohibitions
GPAI Models
Full Compliance
When Do EU AI Act Requirements Come Into Effect?
Systematic implementation schedule with enforcement milestones
August 1, 2024 — Entry into Force
COMPLETEDEU AI Act officially entered force, establishing legal framework and beginning implementation timeline.
February 2, 2025 — Prohibitions Active
ACTIVEBanned AI practices prohibited. AI literacy obligations commence requiring staff competency in AI systems operation.
August 2, 2025 — GPAI Obligations
CRITICALGeneral-purpose AI model governance, transparency obligations, and systemic risk management requirements active.
August 2, 2026 — Full Compliance
FINALComplete compliance required for all high-risk AI systems including risk management, transparency, and human oversight.
What Are the EU AI Act Penalty Levels?
Three-tier penalty framework based on violation severity
Prohibited Practices
or 7% global turnover
- • Subliminal manipulation techniques
- • Exploiting vulnerable populations
- • Social scoring systems
- • Real-time biometric identification
High-Risk Violations
or 3% global turnover
- • Non-compliant risk management
- • Inadequate data governance
- • Missing human oversight
- • Insufficient documentation
Other Violations
or 1.5% global turnover
- • Incorrect authority information
- • Non-cooperation with regulators
- • GPAI model non-compliance
- • AI literacy violations
How Should Organisations Prepare for EU AI Act Deadlines?
What is the most critical EU AI Act deadline?
August 2, 2025 represents the critical GPAI model compliance deadline, requiring governance rules, transparency obligations, and systemic risk management for general-purpose AI systems.
How long do organisations have to achieve full compliance?
Full EU AI Act compliance must be achieved by August 2, 2026, providing organisations 24 months from current date to implement comprehensive high-risk system requirements.
Professional Implementation Guidance
Systematic compliance preparation ensuring readiness for critical implementation milestones.
Professional preparation • Regulatory certainty • Implementation roadmap