SECTION II – OBLIGATIONS OF THE PARTIES

Clause 8
Data protection safeguards

The data exporter warrants that it has used reasonable efforts to determine that the data importer is able, through the implementation of appropriate technical and organisational measures, to satisfy its obligations under these Clauses.

Clause 9
Use of sub-processors

Clause 10
Data subject rights

Clause 11
Redress

1. The data importer shall inform data subjects in a transparent and easily accessible format, through individual notice or on its website, of a contact point authorised to handle complaints. It shall deal promptly with any complaints it receives from a data subject.

Clause 12
Liability

SECTION III – LOCAL LAWS AND OBLIGATIONS IN CASE OF ACCESS BY PUBLIC AUTHORITIES

Clause 14
Local laws and practices affecting compliance with the Clauses

MODULE ONE: Transfer controller to controller

MODULE TWO: Transfer controller to processor

MODULE THREE: Transfer processor to processor

MODULE FOUR: Transfer processor to controller (where the EU processor combines the personal data received from the third country-controller with personal data collected by the processor in the EU)

1. The Parties warrant that they have no reason to believe that the laws and practices in the third country of destination applicable to the processing of the personal data by the data importer, including any requirements to disclose personal data or measures authorising access by public authorities, prevent the data importer from fulfilling its obligations under these Clauses. This is based on the understanding that laws and practices that respect the essence of the fundamental rights and freedoms and do not exceed what is necessary and proportionate in a democratic society to safeguard one of the objectives listed in Article 23(1) of Regulation (EU) 2016/679, are not in contradiction with these Clauses.
2. The Parties declare that in providing the warranty in paragraph (a), they have taken due account in particular of the following elements:
   1. the specific circumstances of the transfer, including the length of the processing chain, the number of actors involved and the transmission channels used; intended onward transfers; the type of recipient; the purpose of processing; the categories and format of the transferred personal data; the economic sector in which the transfer occurs; the storage location of the data transferred;
   2. the laws and practices of the third country of destination– including those requiring the disclosure of data to public authorities or authorising access by such authorities – relevant in light of the specific circumstances of the transfer, and the applicable limitations and safeguards¹²;
   3. any relevant contractual, technical or organisational safeguards put in place to supplement the safeguards under these Clauses, including measures applied during transmission and to the processing of the personal data in the country of destination.
3. The data importer warrants that, in carrying out the assessment under paragraph (b), it has made its best efforts to provide the data exporter with relevant information and agrees that it will continue to cooperate with the data exporter in ensuring compliance with these Clauses.
4. The Parties agree to document the assessment under paragraph (b) and make it available to the competent supervisory authority on request.
5. The data importer agrees to notify the data exporter promptly if, after having agreed to these Clauses and for the duration of the contract, it has reason to believe that it is or has become subject to laws or practices not in line with the requirements under paragraph (a), including following a change in the laws of the third country or a measure (such as a disclosure request) indicating an application of such laws in practice that is not in line with the requirements in paragraph (a).

6. Following a notification pursuant to paragraph (e), or if the data exporter otherwise has reason to believe that the data importer can no longer fulfil its obligations under these Clauses, the data exporter shall promptly identify appropriate measures (e.g. technical or organisational measures to ensure security and confidentiality) to be adopted by the data exporter and/or data importer to address the situation

• . The data exporter shall suspend the data transfer if it considers that no appropriate safeguards for such transfer can be ensured, or if instructed by

• the competent supervisory authority to do so. In this case, the data exporter shall be entitled to terminate the contract, insofar as it concerns the processing of personal data under these Clauses. If the contract involves more than two Parties, the data exporter may exercise this right to termination only with respect to the relevant Party, unless the Parties have agreed otherwise. Where the contract is terminated pursuant to this Clause, Clause 16(d) and (e) shall apply.

Clause 15
Obligations of the data importer in case of access by public authorities

MODULE ONE: Transfer controller to controller

MODULE TWO: Transfer controller to processor

MODULE THREE: Transfer processor to processor

MODULE FOUR: Transfer processor to controller (where the EU processor combines the personal data received from the third country-controller with personal data collected by the processor in the EU)

15.1 Notification

1. The data importer agrees to notify the data exporter and, where possible, the data subject promptly (if necessary with the help of the data exporter) if it:
   1. receives a legally binding request from a public authority, including judicial authorities, under the laws of the country of destination for the disclosure of personal data transferred pursuant to these Clauses; such notification shall include information about the personal data requested, the requesting authority, the legal basis for the request and the response provided; or
   2. becomes aware of any direct access by public authorities to personal data transferred pursuant to these Clauses in accordance with the laws of the  country of destination; such notification shall include all information available to the importer.

2. If the data importer is prohibited from notifying the data exporter and/or the data subject under the laws of the country of destination, the data importer agrees to use its best efforts to obtain a waiver of the prohibition, with a view to communicating as much information as possible, as soon as possible. The data importer agrees to document its best efforts in order to be able to demonstrate them on request of the data exporter.
3. Where permissible under the laws of the country of destination, the data importer agrees to provide the data exporter, at regular intervals for the duration of the contract, with as much relevant information as possible on the requests received (in particular, number of requests, type of data requested, requesting authority/ies, whether requests have been challenged and the outcome of such challenges, etc.).

4. The data importer agrees to preserve the information pursuant to paragraphs (a) to (c) for the duration of the contract and make it available to the competent supervisory authority on request.
5. Paragraphs (a) to (c) are without prejudice to the obligation of the data importer pursuant to Clause 14(e) and Clause 16 to inform the data exporter promptly where it is unable to comply with these Clauses.

15.2 Review of legality and data minimisation

1. The data importer agrees to review the legality of the request for disclosure, in particular whether it remains within the powers granted to the requesting public authority, and to challenge the request if, after careful assessment, it concludes that there are reasonable grounds to consider that the request is unlawful under the laws of the country of destination, applicable obligations under international law and principles of international comity. The data importer shall, under the same conditions, pursue possibilities of appeal. When challenging a request, the data importer shall seek interim measures with a view to suspending the effects of the request until the competent judicial authority has decided on its merits. It shall not disclose the personal data requested until required to do so under the applicable procedural rules. These requirements are without prejudice to the obligations of the data importer under Clause 14(e).
2. The data importer agrees to document its legal assessment and any challenge to the request for disclosure and, to the extent permissible under the laws of the country of destination, make the documentation available to the data exporter. It shall also make it available to the competent supervisory authority on request.

3. The data importer agrees to provide the minimum amount of information permissible when responding to a request for disclosure, based on a reasonable interpretation of the request.

SECTION IV – FINAL PROVISIONS

Clause 16
Non-compliance with the Clauses and termination

1. The data importer shall promptly inform the data exporter if it is unable to comply with these Clauses, for whatever reason.
2. In the event that the data importer is in breach of these Clauses or unable to comply with these Clauses, the data exporter shall suspend the transfer of personal data to the data importer until compliance is again ensured or the contract is terminated. This is without prejudice to Clause 14(f).
3. The data exporter shall be entitled to terminate the contract, insofar as it concerns the processing of personal data under these Clauses, where:
   1. the data exporter has suspended the transfer of personal data to the data importer pursuant to paragraph (b) and compliance with these Clauses is not restored within a reasonable time and in any event within one month of suspension;
   2. the data importer is in substantial or persistent breach of these Clauses; or
   3. the data importer fails to comply with a binding decision of a competent court or supervisory authority regarding its obligations under these Clauses.

• In these cases, it shall inform the competent supervisory authority

• of such non-compliance. Where the contract involves more than two Parties, the data exporter may exercise this right to termination only with respect to the relevant Party, unless the Parties have agreed otherwise.

5. Either Party may revoke its agreement to be bound by these Clauses where (i) the European Commission adopts a decision pursuant to Article 45(3) of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 that covers the transfer of personal data to which these Clauses apply; or (ii) Regulation (EU) 2016/679 becomes part of the legal framework of the country to which the personal data is transferred. This is without prejudice to other obligations applying to the processing in question under Regulation (EU) 2016/679.

Clause 17
Governing law

Clause 18
Choice of forum and jurisdiction

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¹     Where the data exporter is a processor subject to Regulation (EU) 2016/679 acting on behalf of a Union institution or body as controller, reliance on these Clauses when engaging another processor (sub-processing) not subject to Regulation (EU) 2016/679 also ensures compliance with Article 29(4) of Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data by the Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 and Decision No 1247/2002/EC (OJ L 295 of 21.11.2018, p. 39), to the extent these Clauses and the data protection obligations as set out in the contract or other legal act between the controller and the processor pursuant to Article 29(3) of Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 are aligned. This will in particular be the case where the controller and processor rely on the standard contractual clauses included in Decision […].

²     This requires rendering the data anonymous in such a way that the individual is no longer identifiable by anyone, in line with recital 26 of Regulation (EU) 2016/679, and that this process is irreversible.

³     The Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA Agreement) provides for the extension of the European Union's internal market to the three EEA States Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. The Union data protection legislation, including Regulation (EU) 2016/679, is covered by the EEA Agreement and has been incorporated into Annex XI thereto. Therefore, any disclosure by the data importer to a third party located in the EEA does not qualify as an onward transfer for the purpose of these Clauses.

⁴     The Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA Agreement) provides for the extension of the European Union's internal market to the three EEA States Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. The Union data protection legislation, including Regulation (EU) 2016/679, is covered by the EEA Agreement and has been incorporated into Annex XI thereto. Therefore, any disclosure by the data importer to a third party located in the EEA does not qualify as an onward transfer for the purpose of these Clauses.

⁵       See Article 28(4) of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 and, where the controller is an EU institution or body, Article 29(4) of Regulation (EU) 2018/1725.

⁶     The Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA Agreement) provides for the extension of the European Union's internal market to the three EEA States Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. The Union data protection legislation, including Regulation (EU) 2016/679, is covered by the EEA Agreement and has been incorporated into Annex XI thereto. Therefore, any disclosure by the data importer to a third party located in the EEA does not qualify as an onward transfer for the purposes of these Clauses.

⁷     This includes whether the transfer and further processing involves personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, or trade union membership, genetic data or biometric data for the purpose of uniquely identifying a natural person, data concerning health or a person’s sex life or sexual orientation, or data relating to criminal convictions or offences.

⁸       This requirement may be satisfied by the sub-processor acceding to these Clauses under the appropriate Module, in accordance with Clause 7.

⁹       This requirement may be satisfied by the sub-processor acceding to these Clauses under the appropriate Module, in accordance with Clause 7.

¹⁰   That period may be extended by a maximum of two more months, to the extent necessary taking into account the complexity and number of requests. The data importer shall duly and promptly inform the data subject of any such extension.

¹¹   The data importer may offer independent dispute resolution through an arbitration body only if it is established in a country that has ratified the New York Convention on Enforcement of Arbitration Awards.

¹²   As regards the impact of such laws and practices on compliance with these Clauses, different elements may be considered as part of an overall assessment. Such elements may include relevant and documented practical experience with prior instances of requests for disclosure from public authorities, or the absence of such requests, covering a sufficiently representative time-frame. This refers in particular to internal records or other documentation, drawn up on a continuous basis in accordance with due diligence and certified at senior management level, provided that this information can be lawfully shared with third parties. Where this practical experience is relied upon to conclude that the data importer will not be prevented from complying with these Clauses, it needs to be supported by other relevant, objective elements, and it is for the Parties to consider carefully whether these elements together carry sufficient weight, in terms of their reliability and representativeness, to support this conclusion. In particular, the Parties have to take into account whether their practical experience is corroborated and not contradicted by publicly available or otherwise accessible, reliable information on the existence or absence of requests within the same sector and/or the application of the law in practice, such as case law and reports by independent oversight bodies.