# Article 81 - Union safeguard procedure

1.
Where, within three months of receipt of the notification referred to in Article 79(5), or within 30 days in the case of 
non-compliance with the prohibition of the AI practices referred to in Article 5, objections are raised by the market 
surveillance authority of a Member State to a measure taken by another market surveillance authority, or where the 
Commission considers the measure to be contrary to Union law, the Commission shall without undue delay enter into 
consultation with the market surveillance authority of the relevant Member State and the operator or operators, and shall 
evaluate the national measure. On the basis of the results of that evaluation, the Commission shall, within six months, or 
within 60 days in the case of non-compliance with the prohibition of the AI practices referred to in Article 5, starting from 
the notification referred to in Article 79(5), decide whether the national measure is justified and shall notify its decision to 
the market surveillance authority of the Member State concerned. The Commission shall also inform all other market 
surveillance authorities of its decision.
2.
Where the Commission considers the measure taken by the relevant Member State to be justified, all Member States 
shall ensure that they take appropriate restrictive measures in respect of the AI system concerned, such as requiring the 
withdrawal of the AI system from their market without undue delay, and shall inform the Commission accordingly. Where 
the Commission considers the national measure to be unjustified, the Member State concerned shall withdraw the measure 
and shall inform the Commission accordingly.
3.
Where the national measure is considered justified and the non-compliance of the AI system is attributed to 
shortcomings in the harmonised standards or common specifications referred to in Articles 40 and 41 of this Regulation, 
the Commission shall apply the procedure provided for in Article 11 of Regulation (EU) No 1025/2012.

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Source: Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 (Artificial Intelligence Act) as amended by Regulation (EU) 2026/1744, consolidated text of 27 July 2026 (Official Journal of the EU). This page is AI-generated legal information, not legal advice. Verify against the Official Journal.
Canonical: https://euaiactlaw.com/article/81