Guernsey’s new data protection law comes into force on Friday 25 May 2018 after the States Assembly approved relevant enactment ordinances.
The introduction of the new law means the island is aligned with the EU and its General Data Protection Regulation, which also comes into effect on Friday. It also provides a transitional period of one year (until May 2019) to achieve compliance with aspects of the new law. In practice, this will provide businesses and public authorities with additional time to meet some of the new requirements. The transitional period applies to areas such as consent, data protection impact assessments and breach reporting.
Also approved by the Assembly last week, the Law Enforcement Ordinance relates to the sharing of personal data inside and outside of the Bailiwick of Guernsey to ensure effective cross-border cooperation in criminal matters. It enables law enforcement agencies to continue working collaboratively with EU Members States when required.
The ordinances can be found at: https://www.gov.gg/article/163878/States-Meeting-on-16-May-2018
