Authorised Representatives

Under Article 3(5) of the eu-ai-act-regulation-2024-1689, an authorised representative means "a natural or legal person located or established in the Union who has received and accepted a written mandate from a provider of an AI system or a general-purpose AI model to, respectively, perform and carry out on its behalf the obligations and procedures established by this Regulation."

Mandatory Appointment

High-Risk AI Systems (Article 22): Providers established in third countries must appoint an authorised representative before making systems available in the EU.

General-Purpose AI Models (Article 54): Third-country providers must appoint representatives before placing models on the Union market (with exceptions for free/open-source models without systemic risk).

Key Responsibilities

For High-Risk AI Systems (Article 22(3))

• Verify EU declaration of conformity and technical documentation
• Maintain documentation and certificates for 10 years
• Provide information to authorities upon request
• Cooperate with authorities on compliance matters
• Ensure registration obligations are met

For General-Purpose AI Models (Article 54(3))

• Verify technical documentation and compliance
• Maintain documentation for 10 years
• Provide information to AI Office upon request
• Cooperate with AI Office and authorities

Legal Authority

The written mandate must empower the representative to:

• Be addressed by authorities instead of or in addition to the provider
• Handle all compliance-related issues
• Act with binding authority on behalf of the provider

Termination of Mandate

Representatives must terminate the mandate if they consider the provider is acting contrary to regulation obligations, and immediately inform relevant authorities.

Accountability

While representatives act on behalf of providers, they must:

• Ensure they have adequate information and authority
• Maintain confidentiality of obtained information
• Provide accurate and complete information to authorities
• Act in good faith in fulfilling their responsibilities

The appointment of an authorised representative does not relieve the provider of their ultimate responsibility for compliance with the regulation.