Market Surveillance Authorities under the AI Act

Market surveillance authorities have the power to intervene when AI systems pose risks or do not comply with the requirements of the AI Act, to conduct remote monitoring, and to access providers' documentation, data sets, and source code. These authorities can propose joint investigations with the Commission, request corrective measures, and enforce the rules through the imposition of penalties.

Market surveillance authorities have the duty to report annually to the Commission and relevant national authorities, and to inform the Commission and other Member States of any measure adopted, as well as of the results of risk evaluations. In carrying out their tasks, they should be independent, impartial and unbiased.

When to contact a market surveillance authority?

Complaints from individuals are going to be an essential contribution to an effective enforcement of the AI Act. For this purpose, the market surveillance authority will accept complaints by any natural or legal person, if they have grounds to consider that there has been an infringement of the provisions of the AI Act.

Cooperation between market surveillance authorities

Effective cross-border cooperation between market surveillance authorities in different EU countries is essential to ensure efficient, comprehensive, and consistent market surveillance. The market surveillance authorities under the AI Act come together under the framework of the European AI Board, to facilitate cooperation, the exchange of expertise and effective enforcement in their area. They will be able to make use of existing EU tools to facilitate information exchange and cooperation. Learn more about the way market surveillance authorities can cooperate at EU level.

Each Member State must appoint one or multiple market surveillance authorities, based on their needs and taking account of sectoral responsibilities. In case of multiple market surveillance authorities, they must designate a Single Point of Contact vis-à-vis the public and other counterparts from Member States and the EU.

Member States are required to designate the responsible market surveillance authorities by 2 August 2025 and notify them to the Commission. The Commission is considering the notifications and will publish a list of Single Points of Contact in due time.

If the Member States fail to designate a market surveillance authority by that date, the Commission may launch a formal infringement procedure against the Member State.

The European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) is the designated market surveillance authority for EU institutions, bodies and agencies. In this capacity, the EDPS is tasked with the monitoring of the implementation and respect of the AI Act in the EU institutions, bodies and agencies, and is entitled to impose administrative fines, under certain conditions, on those failing to comply with the regulation. Learn more about the role of the EDPS as AI Act supervisor.

Below is a list of Single Points of Contact for market surveillance in EU Member States. This list is updated continuously in light of the ongoing implementation process of the AI Act. For Single Points of Contact marked with *, the national designation decision is still pending final adoption.