Art.31

Article 31 — Requirements Relating to Notified Bodies

Governance SME Relevant ~2 min read · 490 words

Article 31 sets out the detailed requirements that a conformity assessment body must meet to qualify as a notified body under the EU AI Act. Independence, technical competence, impartiality, and financial sustainability are the four pillars. This article defines what a trustworthy AI auditor looks like.

✓ Low compliance impact for SMEs

WHAT THE ARTICLE IS ABOUT

The qualification standards for AI conformity assessment bodies

Article 31 is the most detailed article in the notified bodies section. It specifies the full set of requirements — organisational, operational, and technical — that a conformity assessment body must satisfy before it can be designated as a notified body and begin issuing AI Act conformity certificates. It functions as a quality standard for the auditors of high-risk AI.

WHAT IT SAYS

Independence, competence, impartiality and financial soundness

Notified bodies must be legally established under national law and have legal personality
They must be third-party bodies — independent of the organisations and AI systems they assess; they must not be the developer, provider, importer, distributor or deployer of any AI system they certify
They must be financially independent — their income must not depend on the outcome of their assessments
They must have documented procedures for carrying out their assessment activities and for handling complaints and appeals
They must have sufficient personnel with the necessary technical knowledge and experience — including expertise in AI, data science, cybersecurity, and relevant sectoral domains
Their staff must be bound by professional secrecy obligations
They must carry appropriate liability insurance
They must participate in coordination activities with other notified bodies
Where the notified body is part of a larger organisation, it must be structurally separated from other parts of the organisation that could create conflicts of interest

WHO IS AFFECTED

Bodies seeking or holding notified body designation

Testing and certification organisations seeking to become notified bodies for AI Act purposes
Existing notified bodies under other EU legislation extending their scope to cover AI systems
National notifying authorities who assess compliance with these requirements
Providers of high-risk AI systems who rely on the quality and independence of these bodies

WHAT IT MEANS FOR SMES

Use this article as your checklist when selecting a notified body

When selecting a notified body for your conformity assessment, Article 31 gives you the criteria to evaluate them — ask for evidence of accreditation, staff qualifications, and conflict of interest policies
Independence is the most important criterion: a notified body with commercial relationships with AI providers in your sector may have conflicts of interest that compromise the value of their certificate
The liability insurance requirement matters: if a notified body issues a certificate for a non-compliant system, their insurance is the mechanism for addressing consequential harm
Smaller or newer notified bodies may technically meet Article 31 requirements but have limited practical experience with AI systems — weigh accreditation against track record
If a notified body cannot produce their accreditation certificate or demonstrate their separation from commercial AI interests on request, treat this as a red flag

Article 29 — Application procedure (notified bodies must demonstrate these requirements when applying)
Article 32 — Presumption of conformity (how harmonised standards help bodies demonstrate compliance with Article 31)
Article 37 — Challenge to competence (the mechanism for questioning whether a body meets these requirements)
Article 43 — Conformity assessment (the activities notified bodies perform once designated)

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