APREX · EST. 2026
The EU has long faced pressure from industry and member states to ease the pace of AI Act implementation. On 29 June 2026, the Council of the EU put the finishing touches on the so-called "Digital Omnibus on AI" — part of the broader legislative package known as Omnibus VII. The deal was provisionally agreed on 7 May 2026 and adopted by the European Parliament on 16 June.
What Has Changed?
The core of the package is simplification and deadline extensions, but it also introduces new prohibitions.
Extended Deadlines for High-Risk Systems
The most widely discussed changes concern the deadlines for so-called high-risk AI systems. Systems listed in Annex III — covering biometrics, critical infrastructure, education, the labour market, migration, and border control — have their deadlines pushed back from August 2026 to December 2027, an extension of 16 months. For product-regulated systems under Annex I, such as medical devices and lifts, the deadline is shifted one year forward, from August 2027 to August 2028.
The rationale is that neither businesses nor national regulators are sufficiently prepared to comply with the original deadlines, according to source material from Insight EU Monitoring.
SMEs and Regulatory Sandboxes
The package also expands benefits for small and medium-sized enterprises. Simplified technical documentation requirements, previously applicable only to SMEs, are now extended to include so-called "small mid-cap companies" (SMCs). In addition, more actors gain access to regulatory sandboxes — including an EU-level sandbox — where AI solutions can be tested under real-world conditions without being fully subject to the regulatory framework.
Machinery Regulation Changes Track
A technical but significant change: the Machinery Regulation ((EU) 2023/1230) is moved from Section A to Section B in Annex I. This means that AI-enabled machinery no longer needs to simultaneously meet dual requirements from both the AI Act and sector-specific legislation. Sectoral rules take precedence, and the European Commission is also granted authority to adopt secondary legislation that can exempt certain high-risk AI systems from specific provisions of the AI Act where sectoral regulation already provides equivalent or greater protection.
New Prohibitions Take Effect Sooner
Despite simplification in many areas, the package also introduces tighter rules. A new prohibition is introduced on offering, deploying, or placing on the market AI systems that generate or manipulate realistic depictions of identifiable persons' intimate body parts or sexual activities — without explicit consent. The prohibition also covers AI-generated CSAM (child sexual abuse material). This prohibition takes effect on 2 December 2026.
We are pressing the pause button on the AI Act and cutting red tape. It must become easier to build the technology companies of the future in Europe — Arba Kokalari, co-rapporteur, European Parliament
Transparency Requirements for Synthetic Content
For AI systems that generate or manipulate synthetic content and were placed on the EU market before 2 August 2026, the requirement for machine-readable labelling of artificially generated content is extended by four months — to 2 December 2026. Systems launched after 2 August 2026 must comply with the requirement from their launch date.
What Does This Mean for Norway?
Through the EEA Agreement, Norway is obliged to incorporate EU regulations in this area. This means that Norwegian businesses that develop or use AI systems in categories defined as high-risk — for example in the health sector, the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration (Nav), the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI), or municipal case processing — are in practice subject to the same deadlines and requirements as their European counterparts.
The extended deadline gives Norwegian actors more time to establish internal controls, technical documentation, and compliance procedures — but there is nothing to suggest that the requirements themselves are being weakened. The AI Office's role as the central supervisory body has moreover been strengthened through the package, which may lead to more predictable enforcement across borders.
The amending regulation formally enters into force following publication in the Official Journal of the EU during the summer of 2026.