On July 4, 2025, a non-paper from the Danish government signaled an intention to propose a targeted revision of the GDPR and the ePrivacy Directive to reduce the compliance burden on companies and ensure their competitiveness.  Denmark recently assumed the Presidency of the Council of the European Union and will be in a privileged position to shape EU policymaking for the next six months.  Amending the GDPR forms part of the Danish presidency program.  During this period, the European Commission is also expected to publish a fitness check on EU digital legislation, along with a digital omnibus package (see our previous blog here).

According to the Danish document, the proposed changes could benefit businesses while maintaining an adequate level of data protection.  The document includes proposals to:

  • Exempt companies from obtaining data subject (“cookie”) consent where personal communications data is collected for “technical purposes and simple statistics” (Article 5(3) ePrivacy Directive;
  • Define a minimum threshold for when data subject rights apply (Articles 12-20 GDPR);
  • Remove the right to data portability (Article 20 GDPR);
  • Reduce the number of companies required to keep records of processing activities (Article 30(5) GDPR);
  • Lift (part of) the open-ended obligation for SMEs to have documentation in place to demonstrate GDPR compliance (Article 24(1) GDPR);
  • Exempt data controllers from having to notify certain data breaches to the supervisory authority, such as “uncomplicated and clearly defined” breaches (Article 33 GDPR);
  • Clarify when DPIAs are required and consider exemptions or simplifications for SMEs (Article 35 GDPR); and
  • Make the data subject’s right to lodge a complaint with the supervisory authority conditional upon certain criteria (e.g., prior engagement with the data controller if an SME) (Article 77 GDPR).

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The Covington team will continue to monitor developments on these proposals, and we are happy to assist clients if they have any queries.

(This blog post was written with the contributions of Alberto Vogel).

Photo of Dan Cooper Dan Cooper

Daniel Cooper is co-chair of Covington’s Data Privacy and Cyber Security Practice, and advises clients on information technology regulatory and policy issues, particularly data protection, consumer protection, AI, and data security matters. He has over 20 years of experience in the field, representing…

Daniel Cooper is co-chair of Covington’s Data Privacy and Cyber Security Practice, and advises clients on information technology regulatory and policy issues, particularly data protection, consumer protection, AI, and data security matters. He has over 20 years of experience in the field, representing clients in regulatory proceedings before privacy authorities in Europe and counseling them on their global compliance and government affairs strategies. Dan regularly lectures on the topic, and was instrumental in drafting the privacy standards applied in professional sport.

According to Chambers UK, his “level of expertise is second to none, but it’s also equally paired with a keen understanding of our business and direction.” It was noted that “he is very good at calibrating and helping to gauge risk.”

Dan is qualified to practice law in the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Belgium. He has also been appointed to the advisory and expert boards of privacy NGOs and agencies, such as the IAPP’s European Advisory Board, Privacy International and the European security agency, ENISA.

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Photo of David Brazil David Brazil

David Brazil is an associate in the Data Privacy and Cybersecurity Practice Group. He advises clients on emerging European regulations related to technology, consumer protection and cybersecurity law (such as the Digital Services Act, AI Act, DORA, Cyber Resilience Act and NIS-2). David…

David Brazil is an associate in the Data Privacy and Cybersecurity Practice Group. He advises clients on emerging European regulations related to technology, consumer protection and cybersecurity law (such as the Digital Services Act, AI Act, DORA, Cyber Resilience Act and NIS-2). David has experience advising clients on their general compliance with these rules, as well as in the context of regulatory investigations for alleged non-compliance. He has experience advising companies in various sectors, including online retail, financial services and software and cloud service providers.

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