Article 15a – Obligation for data holders to make data available on the basis of a public emergency

Where a public sector body, the Commission, the European Central Bank or a Union body demonstrates the need to use certain data to carry out its statutory duties in the public interest when responding to, or supporting the recovery from a public emergency, it may request from data holders that are legal persons, other than public sectors bodies, to make available those data, including the metadata necessary to interpret and use those data. Upon such duly reasoned request, data holders shall make the data and metadata available to the requesting public sector body, the Commission, the European Central Bank or Union body. Such requests may also be made where the production of official statistics is required in relation to a public emergency.

Where the data requested are necessary to respond to a public emergency, and the requesting body pursuant to paragraph 1 is unable to obtain such data by other means in a timely and effective manner under equivalent conditions, the request shall concern non-personal data. Where the provision of non-personal data is insufficient to respond to the public emergency, personal data may also be requested and, , made available in pseudonymised form, subject to appropriate technical and organisational measures to ensure their protection.

Where the data requested are necessary to support the recovery from a public emergency and the requesting body pursuant to paragraph 1 acting on the basis of Union or national law is unable to obtain such data by other means in a timely and effective manner under equivalent conditions, it may request specific non-personal data, the lack of which prevents it from supporting the recovery from a public emergency. Such requests shall not be made to microenterprises and small enterprises.