Compliance countdown · 20 August to 31 December 2026

Every EU and UK compliance deadline left in 2026

Each date checked against a primary source or two independent professional sources. Reviewed monthly.

Day counts are worked out in your browser on the day you read the page. A date that has passed drops off the list on its own.

AUGUST 2026

25 August 2026 UK Electronic and workplace balloting arrives for statutory union ballots Employers with recognised or organising unions, any size.

SEPTEMBER 2026

1 September 2026 UK, financial services FCA conduct rules on serious non-financial misconduct reach non-bank firms Around 37,000 FCA-regulated non-bank firms, including small advisers and brokers.
1 September 2026 EU (France) French e-invoicing mandate opens, receipt for all, issuing for large and mid-sized firms All French-established businesses regardless of size on receipt; large and ETI on issuing. SMEs and micro-enterprises issue from September 2027.
1 September 2026 UK Resubmission of 2025 packaging data under pEPR closes Any business that pays pEPR fees, including small packaging producers.
11 September 2026 EU Cyber Resilience Act 24 hour reporting begins Any manufacturer placing hardware or software with digital elements on the EU market, including small software vendors.
12 September 2026 EU Data Act access-by-design binds new connected products Manufacturers and providers of connected products and their related services, from IoT devices to industrial machinery.
27 September 2026 EU Empowering Consumers Directive bans unproven green claims Any trader selling to EU consumers, including online sellers and small brands making green claims.

OCTOBER 2026

1 October 2026 UK, residential development Building Safety Levy starts on residential building control applications Developers and named clients on building control applications, including small housebuilders. Affordable and non-profit housing is exempt.
1 October 2026 EU (Greece) Greek B2B e-invoicing reaches every remaining resident taxpayer Every Greek-established business not already caught by the March 2026 phase, which means the whole SME base.
1 October 2026 UK Right to work checks extend to agency, gig and subcontract labour Any business engaging labour it does not directly employ, plus recruitment agencies and umbrella companies. Civil penalties up to £60,000 per illegal worker.
1 October 2026 UK (England and Wales) Employment tribunal time limit doubles to six months Every employer. Doubles the exposure window on dismissals, discrimination and wages claims.
3 October 2026 EU (Poland) Polish register of key and important entities closes to applications Around 42,000 Polish businesses across 18 sectors that meet the sector and size criteria and are not entered ex officio.
5 October 2026 UK Telling HMRC you need a Self Assessment return falls due Newly self-employed people, new landlords, anyone with new untaxed income.
28 October 2026 UK Autumn Budget 2026 Every UK business. Expect tax and threshold changes announced here to drive 2027 deadlines.
30 October 2026 UK All reasonable steps duty on sexual harassment takes effect with new union rights Every employer. Union access provisions exempt employers with fewer than 21 workers across all workplaces.
30 October 2026 UK (public sector buyers, affects SME suppliers) Procurement Act payments compliance notices fall due Contracting authorities. SME suppliers use these notices as evidence on late payment.
31 October 2026 EU (Italy) Italian NIS2 basic security measures fall due and ACN inspection begins Over 20,000 Italian organisations on the national NIS list, of which more than 5,000 are essential entities.
31 October 2026 UK Paper Self Assessment returns must reach HMRC Sole traders, landlords and directors who file on paper.

NOVEMBER 2026

7 November 2026 UK Second Making Tax Digital quarterly update is due Sole traders and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000. No penalty points in the first year.
9 November 2026 UK (Scotland) Breach of contract claims in Scotland gain the six month tribunal limit Employers in Scotland.
17 November 2026 UK Companies House identity verification transition ends Every UK company and LLP, an estimated 6 to 7 million people. Failure blocks confirmation statements and risks strike-off and financial penalties.

DECEMBER 2026

1 December 2026 UK, maritime Seafarer protection regulations take effect Operators of services using seafarers.
2 December 2026 EU AI Act marking grace for existing generative systems expires Any provider of generative AI systems on the EU market, including small software firms embedding generative features.
2 December 2026 EU Two new prohibited AI practices apply Providers and deployers of AI systems on the EU market. Breach of a prohibition carries fines up to EUR 35 million or 7 per cent of worldwide turnover.
2 December 2026 EU Platform Work Directive transposition deadline Digital labour platforms and the businesses that use platform labour. National rules will vary, so watch your own Member State.
9 December 2026 EU Revised Product Liability Directive transposition deadline Manufacturers, importers, distributors and fulfilment providers, plus software firms newly exposed to strict liability.
30 December 2026 EU EU Deforestation Regulation obligations bind large and medium operators Anyone placing cattle, cocoa, coffee, oil palm, rubber, soya or wood, or derived products, on or exporting from the EU market. Micro and small enterprises have until 30 June 2027, except those already covered by the EU Timber Regulation, which are caught now.
30 December 2026 UK Online Self Assessment filing for PAYE code collection Directors and employees with a side trade or rental income who prefer to pay through payroll.

On the horizon

Expected, with no fixed date inside the window. These carry no count and no page of their own. Each item verified 19 August 2026. Each item verified 19 August 2026.

EU Data Omnibus EU Adoption expected late 2026 at the earliest, first application unlikely before 2027
Still in trilogue as at August 2026, covering GDPR, ePrivacy, NIS2 and DORA. The AI half was split off and is already law as Regulation (EU) 2026/1744.
ICO statutory code of practice on AI and automated decision-making UK No publication date set; final non-statutory ADM guidance expected summer 2026
SI 2026/425 came into force on 12 May 2026 and requires the ICO to produce the code. Non-statutory ADM guidance was consulted on to 29 May 2026.
UK Cyber Security and Resilience (Network and Information Systems) Bill UK Royal Assent expected late 2026; operational duties not expected in force until 2028
Before the House of Lords since 17 June 2026, second reading 14 July 2026, committee stage from September. Operational duties arrive through secondary legislation.
UK tipping law strengthening UK Government commits to "by the end of 2026"; no commencement date set
The draft Code of Practice was withdrawn and no commencement date has been set.
EU Digital Identity Wallets, Regulation (EU) 2024/1183 EU Member States must provide at least one wallet by "the end of 2026"; no exact calendar date published
The duty falls on Member States, not on businesses. Private-sector acceptance duties follow around twelve months later.
UK DMCC subscription contracts regime UK Brought forward to January 2027; secondary legislation and guidance expected inside 2026
Pushed from autumn 2026 to spring 2027, then brought forward by the Prime Minister on 10 August 2026 to January 2027.
ETIAS EU No launch date now exists
The Q4 2026 target was removed from the official EU page in mid-July 2026.
EU Digital Fairness Act EU Legislative proposal expected in Q3 or Q4 2026
Targets dark patterns and addictive design.
NIS2 transposition still outstanding EU National registration deadlines will land with little notice; Spain's expected late 2026
As at mid-2026 France, Ireland and Spain had not completed transposition and were referred to the Court of Justice on 8 July 2026.
UK late payment reform UK No commencement date
Proposals to cut maximum payment terms from 60 to 45 days and widen the Small Business Commissioner's powers.
Companies House accounts and software filing changes UK Will not now start in April 2027; at least 21 months' notice promised
Mandatory software filing of accounts and removal of abridged accounts for small companies.