Following the landmark Schrems II case in 2020, there has been significant global focus on the regulation of international data transfers. There has been a particular focus on how the UK fits into the picture following its departure from the EU, and there have been some important developments during 2021 and so far in 2022 which either directly impact the UK or have a bearing on its direction of travel. Our timeline below tracks a selection of these key developments. With the ICO’s template "International Data Transfer Agreement" and "SCC Addendum" coming into force on 21 March 2022, and DCMS setting the tone for ambitious reforms to the UK’s data protection regime including in connection with “reducing barriers to data flows”, 2022 promises to be equally as significant as 2021, and a year for organisations in or with a nexus to the UK to focus on their international data transfer arrangements.

Timeline