Cloud switching under the EU Data Act
Action planning and contract drafting in light of interoperability and provider changes
A central component of the European data strategy is Regulation (EU) 2023/2854 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 2023 (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Data Act’), which entered into force on 11 January 2024. Of the eleven chapters of the Data Act, the requirements for ‘data sharing’ (in particular Chapters II to IV of the Data Act) have attracted the most attention so far (click here for our article).
In contrast, the topic of cloud switching and interoperability (in particular Chapter VI of the Data Act) has received relatively little attention to date, despite the sometimes far-reaching requirements. In view of the immediate applicability of the Data Act throughout the EU from 12 September 2025, this is likely to change. Companies are therefore well advised to consider the implications for their business models and contract design.
Why were the cloud switching provisions introduced?
With the provisions on cloud switching (Chapter VI – Articles 23-31 of the Data Act), the EU plans to promote competition and innovation and prevent so-called ‘lock-in effects’ by facilitating the switch between ‘data processing services’ and reducing costs. To this end, mandatory requirements for removing barriers to switching data processing services are being introduced.
Who is affected?
According to the cloud switching requirements, customers must be able to switch to another data processing service or to their own ICT infrastructure. In order to understand what is covered by these regulations and who benefits from them, it is first necessary to have a clear understanding of the terminology:
Understanding the concept of cloud switching and planning measures
Chapter VI of the Data Act contains various requirements for cloud switching. In some cases, the exact scope of the requirements is still unclear and must therefore be clarified on a case-by-case basis based on the specific circumstances.
Principles of cloud switching (Art. 23, 24, 27 Data Act):
The general principles prohibit providers of data processing services from creating ‘pre-commercial, commercial, technical, contractual and organisational obstacles’ to switching to another provider. All parties involved are obliged to cooperate in good faith to facilitate a switch.
Information and transparency obligations (Art. 26, 28 Data Act):
Providers of data processing services shall provide customers with comprehensive information on their website or by other means.
Technical details (Art. 30, 31 Data Act):
Different requirements apply depending on the type of data processing service.
Contractual requirements (Art. 25 Data Act):
The provisions of Section 25 of the Data Act are probably the most far-reaching in Chapter VI, as they directly interfere with the parties' freedom of contract and impose strict notice periods and exit support. However, there are still some ambiguities across the different language versions of the Data Act. The requirements to be included in the contract relate in particular to:
Restriction of switching charges (Art. 29 Data Act):
The possibility of imposing switching charges will be gradually reduced and is set to be eliminated from 2027.
What do you need to do?
How can we support you?
We are happy to support you throughout your entire EU Data Act journey, from compliance (e.g. information obligations, interoperability requirements, contract adjustments) to business model adjustments, service processing and the fulfilment of cloud switching requests. We are also happy to help you make the most of the potential and opportunities offered by the Data Act. To do this, we draw on proven accelerators such as our EU Data Act Compliance Framework (for maturity assessments and action planning) and a broad network of regulatory, technical and strategic experts.
Please feel free to contact us.
Christopher Eduard Bösch, LL.M.
