As from 25 May 2018, the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) has succeeded the Article 29 Working Party. The EDPB is a body of the Union, has legal personality and is independent. It is composed of the head of one supervisory authority of each Member State and of the EDPS, or their respective representatives.
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) provides that the EDPB is in charge of ensuring the consistency of its application throughout the Union.
To achieve this, the EDPB is empowered in particular to issue guidance on relevant issues concerning the interpretation and application of the GDPR ; to issue opinions regarding a variety of matters such as binding corporate rules, certification criteria and codes of conduct used by companies; to provide the Commission with an opinion for the assessment of the adequacy of the level of protection in a third country or international organisation ; to adopt binding decisions to ensure consistency between supervisory authorities as well as urgent binding decisions in case there is an urgent need to act.
Cooperation with EEA data protection authorities is an essential element of EDPS activities particularly within the EDPB.
Besides its role as full member of the EDPB, the EDPS also provides an independent secretariat for the EDPB. The secretariat offers administrative and logistic support for the EDPB as well as performs analytical work to contribute to the EDPB’s tasks.
Finally, the EDPS also cooperate with the European Economic Area (EEA) and European Free Trade Association (EFTA).