The European Commission has published in the OJEU of April 20th 2009 its Recommendation including a set of data protection guidelines for the Internal Market Information System (IMI). These guidelines are not aimed at being an exhaustive list, but rather a easy to use consultation tool for IMI System users.

Commission Decision COM 2008/49/EC of December 12th 2007 concerning the implementation of the Internal Market Information System (IMI) as regards the protection of personal data laid down the functions, rights and obligations of the IMI actors and
IMI users.

Further to the adoption of this Decision, the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) adopted an opinion where it called for the adoption of a legal instrument, preferably in the form of a Council and Parliament Regulation in view of the fact that IMI is expected to gradually broaden its scope to additional areas of internal market legislation with increased complexity and an increasing number of participating authorities and data exchanges.

In several meetings and in an exchange of letters between the EDPS and the Commission services it was agreed to follow a step by step approach which would start with the adoption of data protection guidelines, to be drawn up in close consultation with the EDPS.

These guidelines included in Commission's Recommendation are not intended to be a comprehensive review of all data protection issues in connection with IMI but a user-friendly explanation, a compliance framework that all IMI users can understand. In case of need, IMI users can always obtain further guidance and assistance from the data protection authorities in the Member States.

Internal Market Information System (IMI)

The Internal Market Information System (IMI) is a software application accessible via the Internet designed by the European Commission in cooperation with the Member States. Its main goal is to assist Member States with the practical implementation of EU legislation that provides for mutual assistance and administrative cooperation. IMI is not a database aimed at storing information for long periods of time but rather a centralised mechanism to allow national administrations of the EEA Member States to exchange information, with limited data retention periods.