European Data Protection Supervisor
European Data Protection Supervisor

Privacy-friendly policymaking made easier: EDPS issues the necessity toolkit

Privacy-friendly policymaking made easier: EDPS issues the necessity toolkit


Privacy-friendly policymaking made easier: EDPS issues the necessity toolkit

As part of our commitment to facilitating responsible and informed policymaking, the EDPS has today published a necessity toolkit. The toolkit is designed to help policymakers identify the impact of new laws on the fundamental right to data protection and determine the cases in which the limitation of this right is truly necessary, the EDPS said today.


Almost all EU policy proposals now involve some form of personal data processing. With policymakers increasingly required to respond quickly to acute public security challenges and keep up with developments related to the digital economy or international trade, the need for help to ensure that new proposals respect fundamental rights is greater than ever. In his necessity toolkit, the EDPS provides policymakers with a practical step-by-step checklist, setting out the criteria to be considered by policymakers when they assess the necessity of new legislation, and providing examples to illustrate each step.

Any new EU proposal that interferes with the fundamental right to data protection must undergo a test for necessity. This involves determining, based on objective evidence, whether any proposed limitation on the right to data protection genuinely meets the legislator’s needs, is truly necessary and will have the least intrusive impact on an individual’s right to the protection of personal data.

The toolkit is based on decisions issued by the Court of Justice and the European Court of Human Rights, as well as on Opinions published by both the EDPS and the Article 29 Working Party. It also incorporates feedback gathered on an EDPS background paper on the topic, published in June 2016. This feedback was used to develop the toolkit and ensure that it meets the needs of EU policymakers in all sectors, ranging from security to the digital economy.

As part of a continued effort to ensure that data protection remains a key concern for EU policymakers, the EDPS also plans to provide guidance to policymakers on how to assess the proportionality of new policy measures. Our goal is to ensure that fundamental rights, which represent the core values of the European Union, are protected and respected in all EU policy.

Background information



