EU AI Act Art.18: Documentation keeping
Article 18 of the EU AI Act binds the operator (see the article). It requires Providers must keep at the disposal of the national competent authorities, for ten years from the date the high-risk AI. This page states what it requires, who it binds and the evidence to keep. Browsing is free; the conformance kit is USD 499.
Specifics
| Instrument | Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 (the EU AI Act), as amended by Regulation (EU) 2026/1744 |
|---|---|
| Article | Art.18 |
| Binds | Operator (see the article) |
| Group | High-Risk Operator Obligations |
| Evidence items | 5 |
| Linked NIST AI RMF controls | 0 |
| Linked ISO/IEC 42001 controls | 1 |
| Last updated |
Who does Art.18 bind?
The article binds the operator (see the article). The Act places each duty on a named party in the value chain, so a system can carry a provider duty and a deployer duty at once. Confirm your own position against the text; this page names the party, it does not rule on your facts.
Applies with the high-risk regime: 2 December 2027 for stand-alone systems listed in Annex III, and 2 August 2028 for AI embedded in regulated products listed in Annex I (Article 113, as amended by Regulation (EU) 2026/1744). See the full timeline.
What does Art.18 require?
Providers must keep at the disposal of the national competent authorities, for ten years from the date the high-risk AI system was placed on the market or put into service, the Art.11 technical documentation, the documentation concerning the Art.17 quality management system, documentation of changes approved by notified bodies, the decisions and other documents issued by notified bodies, and the Art.47 EU declaration of conformity. Providers that are financial institutions maintain the technical documentation within the documentation kept under Union financial services law.
This is our plain-language statement of the article, not the text of the regulation. Read the article: Art.18 (Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 on EUR-Lex).
What evidence should we keep for Art.18?
| Category | Evidence to keep |
|---|---|
| Documentation retention | A retention schedule setting ten years from placing on the market or putting into service for each of the five Art.18(1) document classes |
| Documentation retention | A recorded placing-on-market date per system, so the retention clock has a defensible start |
| Documentation retention | Notified body correspondence, approvals of changes and decisions held alongside the technical file |
| Documentation retention | Evidence the documentation stays retrievable and readable for the whole period, including across platform or format migration |
| Documentation retention | An arrangement addressing continued availability to authorities if the provider or its authorised representative ceases activity |
What does a linked control mean here?
A linked control is a NIST AI RMF or ISO/IEC 42001 control that the held rule set records as a topical match, with a confidence and a one-line reason. It does not establish that meeting one requirement satisfies the other, it is not legal advice, and it is not certification. Where no control is recorded, the page says so and does not guess. Sources: the NIST AI RMF and ISO/IEC 42001.
Which NIST AI RMF controls line up with Art.18?
No NIST AI RMF control is recorded as a match for this obligation in the held rule set. It is left unlinked and marked, never guessed.
Which ISO/IEC 42001 controls line up with Art.18?
1 control in the held rule set is recorded as a topical match for this obligation, each with its confidence and reason.
| Control | ISO/IEC 42001 | Confidence |
|---|---|---|
A.6.2.3 | Documentation of AI system design and development Documentation retained ten years at the disposal of national competent authorities. | medium |
What does the conformance kit add for Art.18?
The kit renders this obligation into your own role checklist with the evidence register, the linked controls and a CSV export, for USD 499 one off. See what is in the kit or open it.