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AI law comparison · Data verified 2026-08-22

EU AI Act vs Taiwan AI Basic Act

EU AI Act and Taiwan AI Basic Act are two of the 169 AI and data regulations Aegis Firma tracks. They have different scopes, effective dates, and penalties — and many businesses fall under both. Here is the side-by-side, drawn directly from the regulatory registry.

Find which laws apply to my business

Side by side

Attribute
EU AI Act
Taiwan AI Basic Act
Region
EU
TW
Effective date
2024-08-01
2026-01-14
Enforcement begins
2026-08-02
Who must comply
Applies to: (1) providers placing AI systems on EU market or putting into service, (2) deployers using AI systems within EU, (3) providers/deployers in third countries when output used in EU, (4) importers and distributo…
Applies to providers and deployers of AI systems operating in Taiwan under the Artificial Intelligence Basic Act, passed by the Legislative Yuan on 23 December 2025 and promulgated into force on 14 January 2026. As a fra…
Maximum penalty
€35,000,000 or 7% of global annual turnover (whichever higher) for prohibited AI; €15M or 3% for high-risk violations; €7.5M or 1% for incorrect information to authorities
The Basic Act itself contains no penalty provisions; penalties to be specified in forthcoming sector enforcement regulations (the Act mandates conforming rulemaking within 24 months — by ~14 January 2028)
Compliance requirements
10 tracked
2 tracked
Enforcement actions on record
2
None on record yet
Data last verified
2026-08-22
2026-08-22

Summary of publicly available regulatory text. Verify against current official sources before relying on this for compliance decisions. Not legal advice.

The key difference

EU AI Act takes effect first, so it is usually the more urgent of the two. EU AI Act tracks 10 compliance requirements and Taiwan AI Basic Act tracks 2. They are not interchangeable — meeting one does not discharge the other. The practical question is not which law is “stricter,” but which of them — or both — actually applies to your business.

EU

EU Artificial Intelligence Act

Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 — the world's first comprehensive AI law. Classifies AI systems by risk: prohibited (social scoring, subliminal manipulation), high-risk (Annex III: HR, credit, education, critical infrastructure, law enforcement), limited-risk (transparency obligations for chatbots and deepfakes), minimal-risk (most AI tools). Providers AND deployers have obligations. Extraterritorial: applies when the AI s…

Full EU AI Act requirements
TW

Taiwan — Artificial Intelligence Basic Act (2025)

Taiwan's Legislative Yuan passed the Artificial Intelligence Basic Act on December 23, 2025; it was promulgated and took effect on January 14, 2026. The Act establishes a national framework for responsible AI development and designates the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) as the central competent authority for AI policy coordination. The Executive Yuan must establish a National AI Strategy Special Commi…

Full Taiwan AI Basic Act requirements

Common questions

Could both EU AI Act and Taiwan AI Basic Act apply to my business?

Yes. EU AI Act and Taiwan AI Basic Act are separate regulations with separate scopes — a business can fall under both at once. EU AI Act covers Applies to: (1) providers placing AI systems on EU market or putting into service, (2) deployers using AI systems within EU, (3) providers/deployers in third co… Taiwan AI Basic Act covers Applies to providers and deployers of AI systems operating in Taiwan under the Artificial Intelligence Basic Act, passed by the Legislative Yuan on 23 December… If your operations meet both scopes, you must comply with both. Aegis Firma's free scan checks all 169 tracked regulations against your business profile so you do not have to read each law to find out.

Which has the higher maximum penalty — EU AI Act or Taiwan AI Basic Act?

EU AI Act: €35,000,000 or 7% of global annual turnover (whichever higher) for prohibited AI; €15M or 3% for high-risk violations; €7.5M or 1% for incorrect information to authorities Taiwan AI Basic Act: The Basic Act itself contains no penalty provisions; penalties to be specified in forthcoming sector enforcement regulations (the Act mandates conforming rulemaking within 24 months — by ~14 January 2028) Penalty structures differ by regulator and violation type — read each law's full page for the cure periods and per-violation detail.

When does each law take effect?

EU AI Act — effective 2024-08-01, enforcement from 2026-08-02. Taiwan AI Basic Act — effective 2026-01-14. Dates last verified against official sources on 2026-08-22 and 2026-08-22 respectively.

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