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Regulation Tracker / EU AI Act / Chapter III · Section 5

Article 44
Certificates

Chapter III — Classification rules for high-risk AI systems, Section 5 — Harmonised standards and standardisation deliverables. 4 distinct duties, powers or definitions are coded from this article, applying from 2026-08-02.

Amended by Regulation (EU) 2026/1744 (Digital Omnibus on AI), in force 2026-07-27 — about 17 words changed. The text below is the consolidated version of 27 July 2026; the 2024 text and the amending regulation are on EUR-Lex.

official text: EUR-Lex (consolidated 27 Jul 2026) · text © European Union (Decision 2011/833/EU) · coding CC BY 4.0 · data: obligations.json · Hugging Face · GitHub

The text

1. Certificates issued by notified bodies in accordance with Annex VII shall be drawn-up in a language which can be easily understood by the relevant authorities in the Member State in which the notified body is established.

2. Certificates shall be valid for the period they indicate, which shall not exceed five years for AI systems covered by Annex I, and four years for AI systems covered by Annex III. At the request of the provider, the validity of a certificate may be extended for further periods, each not exceeding five years for AI systems covered by Annex I, and four years for AI systems covered by Annex III, based on a re-assessment in accordance with the applicable conformity assessment procedures. Any supplement to a certificate shall remain valid, provided that the certificate which it supplements is valid.

3. Where a notified body finds that an AI system no longer meets the requirements set out in Section 2, it shall, taking account of the principle of proportionality, suspend or withdraw the certificate issued or impose restrictions on it, unless compliance with those requirements is ensured by appropriate corrective action taken by the provider of the system within an appropriate deadline set by the notified body. The notified body shall give reasons for its decision.

What it requires, coded

SafeLegalAI's reading of each duty in this article: who, what, from when, under which fine tier, and whether it reaches a firm, chambers, court or legal-AI vendor. Descriptive, not advice; the quoted words are the Regulation's.

  1. Art. 44(1)DocumentationHigh-risk

    Certificates issued by notified bodies under Annex VII must be drawn up in a language easily understood by relevant authorities in the notified body’s Member State.

    "Certificates issued by notified bodies in accordance with Annex VII shall be drawn-up in a language which can be easily understood by the relevant authorities in the Member State in which the notified body is established."
    Who
    Notified body
    From
    (Art. 113 second subparagraph)
    Fine tier
    Art. 99(4)
    Legal practice
    Institutional — Notified-body infrastructure; indirect relevance to legal-AI vendors seeking or relying on high-risk conformity assessment.
    See
    Annex VII

  2. Art. 44(2)Conformity assessmentHigh-risk

    Certificates must state their validity period, within the Article 44 maximums, and may be extended only after reassessment under applicable conformity procedures.

    "Certificates shall be valid for the period they indicate, which shall not exceed five years for AI systems covered by Annex I, and four years for AI systems covered by Annex III. At the request of the provider, the validity of a certificate may be extended for further periods, each not exceeding"
    Who
    Notified body
    From
    (Art. 113 second subparagraph)For high-risk AI systems that become high-risk through Art. 6(1) (Annex I products), corresponding obligations apply from 2027-08-02 under Art. 113(c).
    Fine tier
    Art. 99(4)
    Legal practice
    Institutional — Notified-body infrastructure; indirect relevance to legal-AI vendors seeking or relying on high-risk conformity assessment.
    See
    Annex I · Annex III

  3. Art. 44(3)Enforcement powerHigh-risk

    If an AI system no longer meets Section 2 requirements, the notified body must suspend, withdraw or restrict the certificate unless timely corrective action ensures compliance, and give reasons.

    "Where a notified body finds that an AI system no longer meets the requirements set out in Section 2, it shall, taking account of the principle of proportionality, suspend or withdraw the certificate issued or impose restrictions on it, unless compliance with those requirements is ensured by appropriate corrective action taken by"
    Who
    Notified body
    From
    (Art. 113 second subparagraph)
    Fine tier
    Art. 99(4)
    Legal practice
    Institutional — Notified-body infrastructure; indirect relevance to legal-AI vendors seeking or relying on high-risk conformity assessment.
    See
    Chapter III Section 2

  4. Art. 44(3)Right of personHigh-risk

    An appeal procedure must be available against notified-body decisions, including decisions on conformity certificates issued.

    "An appeal procedure against decisions of the notified bodies, including on conformity certificates issued, shall be available."
    Who
    Member State
    From
    (Art. 113 second subparagraph)
    Legal practice
    Institutional — Institutional governance mechanics; indirect relevance to legal practices through oversight and guidance.

Cite

Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, Article 44 (Certificates), as amended by Regulation (EU) 2026/1744, consolidated text of 27 July 2026, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1689/2026-07-27/eng#art_44 — text © European Union; only the Official Journal is authentic. Coding: SafeLegalAI (published by Cognesio LLP), "EU AI Act, structured", safelegalai.com/regulation/eu-ai-act/article-44, accessed 2026-09-08, CC BY 4.0.