EU AI Act Transparency Rules: What Organisations Must Do Before 2 August 2026

Reviewed by Oleksandr Sobovyi, Founder & CEO of CORVUS AI — editorial responsibility statement below.

The EU AI Act transparency deadline is approaching.

On 20 July 2026, the European Commission published its final guidelines on the transparency obligations under Article 50 of the AI Act. These requirements will apply from 2 August 2026.

The guidelines clarify which organisations are affected and how providers and deployers should inform people about AI interactions and AI-generated or manipulated content.

What AI providers must do

Providers must design relevant AI systems so that individuals are clearly informed when they are directly interacting with an AI system.

Providers of systems generating or manipulating text, audio, images or video must also ensure that outputs are marked in a machine-readable format and can be detected as artificially generated or manipulated.

What AI deployers must do

Deployers must inform individuals when they are exposed to:

• emotion recognition systems;

• biometric categorisation systems;

• deepfake content;

• certain AI-generated or manipulated publications concerning matters of public interest.

The precise obligation depends on the organisation’s role, the type of AI system, the content involved and whether meaningful human review or editorial control is present.

The Code of Practice

The European Commission and the AI Board have recognised the voluntary Code of Practice on Transparency of AI-Generated Content as an adequate framework for demonstrating compliance with the relevant Article 50 obligations.

Organisations that follow the Code can rely on a recognised EU-wide compliance framework. Providers and deployers choosing alternative measures will need to demonstrate that their approach is equivalently adequate.

What organisations should do now

Before deploying an AI system or publishing AI-generated content, organisations should:

• determine whether they act as a provider or deployer;

• identify affected AI systems and content;

• map the applicable transparency obligations;

• implement user notices, labels and machine-readable marking;

• establish internal review and approval procedures;

• retain documented evidence of compliance.

How CORVUS AI supports organisations

CORVUS AI provides legal intelligence, regulatory analysis and implementation support for organisations developing or deploying AI, autonomous systems and dual-use technologies.

Our Transparency Readiness approach helps organisations identify applicable obligations, assess compliance gaps and translate legal requirements into practical controls across the EU and Ukraine.

What matters. What’s next.

Disclaimer

This article has been prepared by CORVUS AI for general informational and educational purposes only. It is intended to make complex legal and regulatory developments easier to understand.

It does not constitute legal advice and does not create a professional adviser–client relationship. The information should not be relied upon as a substitute for advice based on the specific facts, circumstances and applicable law relevant to your organisation or project.

The article reflects our understanding of the law and regulatory framework as of the date of publication. Legislation, case law, regulatory guidance and administrative practice may subsequently change. While reasonable care has been taken in preparing this article, CORVUS AI does not warrant that the information is complete or remains current after the date of publication. We do not undertake to update this content.

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, CORVUS AI excludes liability for loss arising from reliance on this article. Nothing in this article constitutes an offer or solicitation to provide regulated legal services in any jurisdiction where doing so would be unlawful.

AI-assisted preparation: This article was prepared with the assistance of AI tools. Its legal analysis, conclusions and final text were subject to human review and editorial control and were reviewed and approved prior to publication by Oleksandr Sobovyi, Founder & CEO of CORVUS AI. CORVUS AI retains editorial responsibility for the published content.

For advice tailored to your organisation, project or specific circumstances, please contact CORVUS AI.

Official sources

European Commission — Guidelines on transparency obligations under Article 50 of the AI Act

European Commission — Code of Practice on Transparency of AI-Generated Content