EU AI Act reaches full applicability on August 2
The remaining provisions of Europe's landmark AI law take effect this summer, two years after it first entered into force.
EBElena Brandt
Published 6 Jul 2026, 19:11Updated 27 Jul 2026, 19:461 min read
- ▸The EU AI Act entered into force on August 1, 2024, and becomes fully applicable on August 2, 2026
- ▸Prohibited AI practices and literacy obligations already applied from February 2025
- ▸Governance rules and obligations for general-purpose AI models took effect in August 2025
- ▸High-risk AI systems embedded in regulated products get an extended transition until August 2028
- ▸The Commission plans a new evaluation capacity call to assess models before EU market entry
A staggered rollout, not a single deadline
Rather than one cliff-edge date, the Act has phased in obligations over roughly four years — meaning "full applicability" this August still leaves the highest-risk category of embedded AI systems with another two years to comply.
Source: European Commission
