Cross-Border Data Transfer

The movement or disclosure of personal data from one country to another, or from one legal jurisdiction to another. Cross-border transfers receive special regulatory attention because data leaving a jurisdiction potentially escapes its privacy protections. GDPR restricts transfers of personal data outside the European Economic Area unless adequate protections exist, such as adequacy decisions, Standard Contractual Clauses, Binding Corporate Rules, or appropriate safeguards. The complexity arises because data can be transferred in many ways—through cloud storage in foreign data centers, accessing databases remotely, sending emails internationally, or outsourcing processing to foreign vendors. Even viewing data on a screen from another country may constitute a transfer. Organizations must map data flows, identify international transfers, implement appropriate transfer mechanisms, conduct transfer impact assessments where required, and document transfer compliance. Transfer regulations are among the most complex and actively evolving areas of privacy law.