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A companion Cyprus bill would create an Artificial Intelligence Regulation Directorate inside the Office of the Commissioner of Communications by amending Law N.112(I)/2004
The headline bill sets out what Cyprus will require. This one, six articles long and easy to miss, decides who will have the staff and the budget to do it.
Bottom line: A draft amending bill in open public consultation. It binds nobody. Comments close 16 September 2026 at 23:50 on the e-Consultation platform.
Who this affects: Boards and general counsel at Cyprus-registered firms placing or using AI systems, telecoms and electronic communications operators already regulated by the Commissioner, and public-sector programme owners planning AI deployments.
Issue date: Posted for comment 16 August 2026; consultation closes 16 September 2026. The draft PDF filename carries the date 12.8.2026.
What changed: Cyprus has published the institutional half of its AI Act implementation: a Directorate for the Regulation of Artificial Intelligence would be established inside the Office of the Commissioner of Communications, and folded into that Office's institutional, administrative, organisational and financial framework.
Analysis: This bill amends only the preamble and Articles 2, 14 and 153 of the base law. That is a deliberate choice to graft AI supervision onto an existing regulator's funding and staffing model rather than stand up a new authority. It is cheaper and faster. It also means AI supervision capacity in Cyprus will be set by whatever the Commissioner's Office can resource.
Primary sources: Consultation listing (EL) · Consultation page for the amending bill (EL)
- Instrument (EN)
- Draft Regulation of Electronic Communications and Postal Services (Amending) Law of 2026
- Authority
- Published on the Republic of Cyprus e-Consultation platform; consultation officer Leda Tsiourtou, leda.tsiourtou@ai.ee.cy
- Jurisdiction
- Republic of Cyprus
- Status
- Open public consultation on a draft amending bill
- Bindingness
- None. Nothing in a bill under consultation applies to anyone.
- Issue date / next deadline
- Posted 16 August 2026; comments close 16 September 2026 at 23:50
- Base law amended
- N.112(I)/2004 on the regulation of electronic communications and postal services
- Structure
- 6 articles, amending the preamble and Articles 2, 14 and 153 of the base law
- Primary source
- https://e-consultation.gov.cy/diavouleuseis/
A six-article bill with one job
The consultation notice describes the object in a single sentence: the inclusion of the Directorate for the Regulation of Artificial Intelligence within the framework of competences of the Commissioner of Communications.
Two things are listed as the proposed amendments, among others. The first is the establishment of a Directorate for the Regulation of Artificial Intelligence in the Office of the Commissioner of Communications, to support the exercise of the Commissioner's competences under the Regulation. The second is the integration of that Directorate into the institutional, administrative, organisational and financial framework of the Office, so that the relevant competences can be exercised effectively and the necessary resources are made available.
The Contents table on the consultation page lists six articles: short title; amendment of the preamble of the base law; amendment of Article 2; amendment of Article 14; amendment of Article 153; and entry into force. Nothing else in N.112(I)/2004 is touched.
Why it is filed as a pair
This bill and the draft Artificial Intelligence Law of 2026 were posted the same day, close the same day, share the same consultation officer, and each carries the other as an attachment on its own consultation page.
That pairing tells you how Cyprus has split the work. Substantive duties, market surveillance powers, administrative fines and the sandbox sit in the AI bill. The institutional plumbing, meaning who employs the people and where the money comes from, sits here.
Comment on one and you have addressed the obligation. Comment on both and you have addressed whether anyone will be in a position to supervise it.
What the amendment approach implies
Grafting a new directorate onto a sitting regulator through four surgical amendments is a well-worn route. It reuses an existing legal personality, an existing budget line, existing procurement and existing staff regulations, and it avoids a standalone authority statute with its own governance chapter.
The trade-off is capacity. On the notice's own account the purpose of the integration is to ensure the effective exercise of the competences and the availability of the necessary resources. That is an aspiration written into an explanatory notice, not a funded establishment table, and the consultation page publishes no headcount or budget.
For a regulated firm the practical consequence is that supervisory intensity is likely to ramp slowly. That is not a reason to defer AI Act readiness work; obligations under Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 do not wait on national staffing.
The comment window
The consultation runs on the e-Consultation platform and accepts comments per article, with a login required to post. When we looked, the entry showed no comments at all.
A short, specific submission on Article 5 of this bill, which amends Article 153 of the base law, is worth more than a general letter. Article 153 in an electronic communications statute is the sort of provision where fees, charges or levies tend to live, and any firm that could end up funding the new Directorate should read that amendment before commenting.
What we did not verify
We opened the e-Consultation listing page and the dedicated consultation page for the amending bill in full, and took the object, the two listed amendments, the six article titles, the dates, the comment count and the consultation officer's details from them.
We did not open the attached draft PDF, so we have not read the operative amendment text. We did not open Law N.112(I)/2004 itself and have not confirmed what its Articles 2, 14 and 153 currently say.
We will not state what Article 153 of the base law governs, whether any levy or fee is proposed, how the Directorate will be staffed or funded, or when the amending law would commence. Our remark about where fees typically sit in such statutes is a reason to read the text, not a finding about this one.
Cyprus is implementing the AI Act through two bills, not one, and the second is the one that decides whether the first has teeth. If you are preparing a consultation response with a Cyprus nexus, read the amending bill's treatment of Articles 14 and 153 of N.112(I)/2004 before the 16 September 2026 deadline, Those are two of only four substantive amendments the bill makes, so whatever the Directorate gains by way of powers or resources has to be in them.
Source File
https://e-consultation.gov.cy/diavouleuseis/
Open the e-Consultation listing and find the entry for the Regulation of Electronic Communications and Postal Services (Amending) Law of 2026. Confirm the Open status, the 16 August 2026 posting and the 16 September 2026 closing date, then open the entry and check that the Contents table has six rows and that Related Material includes the draft Artificial Intelligence Law of 2026.
The Bill has as its object the inclusion of the Directorate for the Regulation of Artificial Intelligence within the framework of competences of the Commissioner of Communications. (translated from the Greek original) ยท e-Consultation notice for the draft amending law, posted 16 August 2026
FAQ
Does this bill create a new AI regulator for Cyprus?
Not a standalone one. On the notice's account it establishes a Directorate for the Regulation of Artificial Intelligence inside the existing Office of the Commissioner of Communications and integrates it into that Office's institutional, administrative, organisational and financial framework.
Is it in force?
No. It is a draft bill in public consultation until 16 September 2026 and binds nobody.
Which provisions of the base law does it change?
The consultation page lists amendments to the preamble and to Articles 2, 14 and 153 of Law N.112(I)/2004, plus a short title article and an entry into force article.
Do I need to respond to both Cyprus consultations?
They are separate submissions with the same deadline, and each page carries the other bill as an attachment. Substantive duties sit in the AI bill; institutional capacity sits in this one.
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