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What Is a UK Representative and Why Do You Need One?

Natacha has held several senior positions within the Foreign Office, including as the Deputy Ambassador for China and Director of Economic Diplomacy and Emerging Powers. She has also worked on global trade policy and international issues related to development.

Companies that are located outside of the UK are required to adhere to UK privacy laws. They must designate an agent in the UK who will be their point-of-contact for people who are data subjects and ICO.

What is what is a UK representative?

The UK Representative is an individual, company or organisation that is formally mandated by a processor or controller of data to act on behalf of the controller or processor in all aspects of GDPR compliance. They will be the main point of contact for enquiries from data subjects exercising their rights or requests from supervisory authorities. They could also be subject to national requirements which have been implemented as a result of the GDPR's extraterritorial scope (see the UK case Rondon v LexisNexis Risk Solutions).

The appointment of a Representative is required under Article 27 of the EU GDPR, as well as the UK equivalent, Section 3(2) of the Data Protection Act 2018. The requirement applies to any company that does not have its own establishment within the United Kingdom and that offers goods or services to or monitors the behavior of individuals residing in the United Kingdom, or that manages personal data of those individuals. The representative must authentic proof of their identity and prove that they can be the data processor or controller in connection with UK GDPR obligations.

In addition to serving as a means for individuals to exercise their GDPR rights, the Representative must be capable of communicating with authorities in the event of a breach. This is because the Representative has to submit a notification to the supervisory authority who appointed them regardless of whether the breach impacts the data subject across multiple jurisdictions.

It is important that the representative you select has experience working with both European and UK authorities for data protection. It is also recommended for them to have local language abilities, as they will likely receive calls from individuals and agencies in the countries they operate.

While the EDPB states that the Representative must be held accountable in the event of non-compliance the UK court case of Rondon v LexisNexis UK Ltd (2019) EWHC 1427 has confirmed that a Representative cannot be sued by an individual for the data controller's inability to comply with the UK GDPR. The court found that the Representative was not in direct connection to the processing of data by the represented entity.

Who is required to appoint an UK Representative?

The EU GDPR requires that businesses from outside the EU with no office or branch within the EU, that target goods or services at European citizens must appoint a Representative. This is in addition to requirements of national data protection laws. The role of a Representative is to be the local point of contact for supervisory authorities and individuals regarding GDPR compliance issues.

The UK has its own equivalent to the EU requirement, set in Article 27 of the UK-GDPR. The threshold is the same as the EU requirement: any company that offers goods or services in the UK or monitoring the behaviour of the data subjects, has to appoint an UK representative.

In accordance with the UK-GDPR, a representative must be authorized in writing by the data subject or the British Information Commissioner's Office[British Information Commissioner's Office] "to be addressed, additionally or alternatively, on behalf of the controller or processor". They are not permitted to be personally held accountable for the GDPR's compliance. They must however cooperate with supervisory authorities during formal proceedings, UK Representative and also receive notifications from individuals who exercise their rights. ).

Representatives must be situated within the EU member state in which the individuals whose personal data are being processed reside. This is not a simple choice and requires an extensive legal and business analysis to determine the best location avon for representatives an organization. We provide a service to help companies assess their needs and choose the best representative option.

It is also recommended that representatives have experience interacting with both supervisory authorities and dealing with data subject requests. Language skills in the local language can also be essential, as the job may require dealing with inquiries by supervisory authority or data subjects in a variety of countries across Europe.

The identity of the representative must be disclosed to data subjects through the privacy policies and information given prior to collecting data (see article 13 UK-GDPR). The UK representative avon's contact details should also be published on your website, allowing the authorities in charge of supervision easy access to connect with them.

When do you need to appoint an UK Representative?

If your company is located outside the UK and offers goods or services to the UK or monitors the conduct of individuals, UK representative you could be required to appoint an UK Representative. The Applied GDPR regime in the UK applies to established companies outside the UK who are carrying out activities in the UK and has the same extraterritorial scope as EU GDPR (with some exceptions). You can take our no-cost self-assessment to see whether you have this obligation.

A representative is appointed by the party appointing under an agreement of service to act for that party in relation to certain obligations under the UK GDPR and EU GDPR, if applicable. In the UK the primary purpose of this would be to facilitate communication between the party that appointed and the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) or any affected data subjects in the UK. A Representative could be an individual or a business that is established in the UK. The body that appoints them must inform data subjects that the Representative is processing their personal data and ensure that the identity of the individual or company is readily accessible to supervisory authorities.

In accordance with Articles 13 and 14 of the UK GDPR The appointing entity is also required to provide the contact details of its representative to the ICO and the data subjects in the UK. It must make it clear that the role of a Representative is separate from and incompatible with that of the role of a Data Protection Officer ("DPO"), which requires a degree of autonomy and independence that cannot be offered by a Representative.

If you are required to appoint an UK representative it is recommended to do so as fast as possible. This is because the need for this comes immediately following Brexit (if there is either a 'hard' or "no deal' Brexit) or after an implementation period (if there is a'soft' or "with deal" Brexit). There is no grace period.

What are the requirements for the designation of a UK Representative?

According to UK laws on data protection, a representative is a person or company who is "designated" in writing by an entity that doesn't have a physical presence in the UK but is subject to the law. The UK representative is required to be able represent an entity in relation to its legal obligations. Contact details for representatives should also be readily accessible to UK residents whose personal data are processed by a non-UK business.

The individual who is the UK Representative must be a senior worker of the foreign media or business organisation and have been recruited and subsequently made an employee outside of the UK by the media or business. The person applying for the visa must intend to be employed full-time as the UK Representative for the business or media company, and are not allowed to engage in any other business activities in the UK.

In addition the visa holder must prove that they have the required skills and experience to perform their role as a UK Representative, which will include acting as local point of contact for queries from data subjects and the UK data protection authorities. This is to ensure that the UK Representative has sufficient knowledge of and expertise in the UK data protection laws, and is able to respond to requests from individuals exercising their rights under the law in addition to any other requests or enquiries received from data protection authorities.

As the Brexit process moves forward, it is likely the UK laws on data protection are going to change over time. At present, it is expected that non-UK businesses who do business in the UK and collect personal information of individuals within the UK will be required to appoint an UK Representative.

It is because article 27 of the GDPR in the United Kingdom that was adopted as an UK national law, requires entities without having a presence in the UK to appoint the position of a UK data protection representative. If you are not sure whether you are required to appoint an UK data protection representative, it is recommended that you consult an experienced lawyer.