Many data exporters are struggling to transfer data to the United States in a GDPR-compliant manner after the European Court of Justice annulled the adequacy decision for the United States in July 2020 with its Schrems II ruling. Data transfer to the US is a sensitive issue, as personal data may be transferred to or accessed from the US in connection with many technology services that are widely used also in the EU. Accordingly, the United States is not only one third country under the GDPR to which data transfers can only take place in accordance with the conditions set out in the GDPR, but it has paramount importance, taking into account the extent of economic relations and the widespread use of technological solutions associated with data transfer (e.g. cloud services).
With respect to the above, the adoption of a new adequacy decision has been highly awaited on the basis of the March 2022 EU-US Data Transfer Framework Agreement, which could significantly make data transfers to the US easier.
Three years after the Schrems II judgment, this moment has come: the European Commission has published the new adequacy decisions regarding the US!