AI labeling requirement from August 2026 — What applies under Art. 50?
From 2 August 2026, transparency duties apply to certain AI content and AI interactions in the EU. Not every use of AI triggers labeling. This overview helps with a first assessment.
Deadline and transition periods
Core transparency duties for deployers under Art. 50(1), (3), and (4) apply from 2 August 2026. The AI Omnibus only postpones machine-readable marking by providers of generative systems already on the market before that date to 2 December 2026.
Three areas deployers should know
From August 2026, Art. 50 mainly covers three cases: deepfakes (AI images, videos, or audio that look real), AI texts on matters of public interest without editorial responsibility, and chatbots where users must recognize from the start that they communicate with AI. For deepfakes, the notice must be clear, at latest upon first perception.
What is often not required
- Editorially reviewed texts with named responsibility
- Pure product and advertising copy without an information mandate
- Internal use without publication
- Obviously artificial illustrations, icons, schematic graphics
- Classic editing without AI (cut-outs, color correction)
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- When does the AI labeling requirement apply?
- Transparency duties under Art. 50 apply from 2 August 2026. For machine-readable marking by providers of generative systems on the market before that date, there is a transition until 2 December 2026.
- Who must label — provider or user?
- Both, depending on the duty: providers of generative AI must provide technical marking. Deployers who publish content must make deepfakes, certain AI texts, and chatbot interactions recognizable to people.
- Is a caption or description enough?
- For social and visual content, caption alone is often insufficient. The notice should be visible on the content itself. For chatbots: information at the start of the interaction.
- Are product descriptions exempt?
- Pure product, advertising, and how-to texts without a public-interest information mandate usually fall outside the AI text duty. Editorially reviewed texts with named responsibility may also be exempt.
- What happens if you fail to comply?
- Breaches of transparency duties can lead to fines up to €15 million or 3% of global annual turnover. This checker does not replace case-specific legal review.
Article 50 explained · Checklists & PDF templates · EU reference Art. 50 (EN)
Orientation based on the EU AI Act (Art. 50). Not legal advice. For borderline cases consult a qualified lawyer. Effective from 02.08.2026 · ai-act-checker.com