The Irish Government published the Regulation of Artificial Intelligence Bill 2026 on 17 June 2026. The Bill is at the proposed legislation stage. Its purpose is to give domestic effect to the EU AI Act, Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, by establishing the national enforcement architecture the Act requires to operate in Ireland.
The EU AI Act (Regulation (EU) 2024/1689) is the controlling EU instrument. The Bill designates Oifig IS na hEireann (AI Office of Ireland) as an independent statutory body serving as Ireland's central coordinating authority under Article 70 of the AI Act. Thirteen sectoral Market Surveillance Authorities are designated for product-specific AI oversight. The Bill introduces a general administrative sanctions regime and amends the Competition and Consumer Protection Act 2014 to establish enforcement procedures for the CCPC. The Central Bank of Ireland retains its existing procedural authority for AI supervision in the financial sector.
Providers, importers, distributors, and deployers of AI systems placed on the Irish market or affecting persons in Ireland will be subject to oversight by the AI Office of Ireland and the relevant Market Surveillance Authority for their sector. Financial services firms supervised by the Central Bank face AI Act obligations enforced through the Bank's established procedures. Operators of high-risk AI systems must align product documentation, conformity assessments, and post-market monitoring with the national enforcement structure the Bill creates.
Pre-legislative scrutiny by the Joint Committee on Enterprise, Tourism and Employment concluded in May 2026. The Bill now progresses through the Oireachtas. The formal appointment of the 13 Market Surveillance Authorities and the establishment of the AI Office remain pending enactment. Entities already subject to the AI Act through sectoral rules under DORA, MiCA, or the Medical Devices Regulation should map existing compliance obligations against the enforcement structure the Bill introduces.
Licentium advises on EU AI Act compliance strategy and implementation across EU member states. We may be able to assist clients with mapping AI systems to Irish enforcement requirements or refer them to specialist Irish legal counsel in our partner network. Work we undertake includes AI Act compliance audits, high-risk AI system classification advice, regulatory gap analysis, and cross-border AI governance strategy.