# GDPR Article 3 — Territorial Scope - Source: https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/gdpr/article-3-territorial-scope - Section: [Compliance](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance) › [GDPR (Regulation (EU) 2016/679)](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/gdpr) › Articles 1–10 - Last updated: 2026-06-05 - Publisher: iCompaas, Inc. (https://www.icompaas.com) **GDPR**·Article `Article 3`·medium·Component: **Chapter I: General Provisions** ## What this control requires > Applies to personal data processing by controllers/processors established in the EU, or non-EU entities targeting/offering services to or monitoring EU data subjects, or where Member State law applies. This control addresses Global Operations. > > — GDPR, Article Article 3 ### In plain English Applies to personal data processing by controllers/processors established in the EU, or non-EU entities targeting/offering services to or monitoring EU data subjects, or where Member State law applies. In practice, this means you can prove you territorial scope-level controls on a defined cadence. ## Why it matters GDPR administrative fines reach the greater of €20 million or 4% of global annual turnover. The European Data Protection Board (EDPB) coordinates supervisory-authority enforcement across the EU/EEA, and DPAs publish enforcement decisions citing specific Articles. ## What an auditor looks for A DPA or privacy auditor expects: a Records of Processing Activities (RoPA) entry, a documented lawful basis, evidence the Article's data-subject right is operationalised end-to-end, a named DPO contact (where required), and Article 30 records that match what the front-end actually does. Within **Chapter I: General Provisions**, the assessor will trace your implementation back to the catalogue reference (Article Article 3) and look for objective evidence on the latest two assessment cycles. ## How to implement #### Policy Management **Docs.** Keep each policy in version-controlled Markdown alongside the code that implements it; ship a signed PDF snapshot at each annual review and link the SHA into the SoA. ### Operational checklist - **Territorial.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Data.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **General.** Document the trigger, the owner and the cadence. - **Scope:** scope, controllers, data subjects. ## Evidence to collect - **Policy Document.** A signed and version-controlled policy / standard / procedure document. - **Infra Scan.** Continuous infrastructure-posture telemetry — AWS Config, Azure Policy compliance, GCP Organisation Policy, Wiz / Prisma findings. Signed policy or standard documents the safeguard. Focus: Territorial Scope. ## Common pitfalls - Policies that no engineer has read; the version in Confluence drifts from the version that's actually being enforced. ## How it maps to other frameworks Computed from shared tags, control component and key-operation subjects — handy when you are reconciling controls across an audit. - [**India DPDP Act 2023 DS-008** — Data Principal Nomination Mechanism](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/india-dpdp-act-2023/ds-008-data-principal-nomination-mechanism) - [**BSI C5:2020 OIS-01** — Information Security Management System (ISMS)](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/bsi-c5-2020/ois-01-information-security-management-system-isms) - [**SOC 2 (2017 TSC) P3.2** — Consent Management for Personal Information Collection](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/soc-2-trust-services-criteria/p3-2-consent-management-for-personal-information-collection) - [**ISO/IEC 27701:2025 A.3.15** — Independent review](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/iso-27701-2025/a-3-15-independent-review) ## Related controls in GDPR - [**Article Article 2** — Material Scope](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/gdpr/article-2-material-scope) - [**Article Article 44** — General principle for transfers](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/gdpr/article-44-general-principle-for-transfers) - [**Article Article 14** — Information to be provided where personal data have not been obtained from the data subject](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/gdpr/article-14-information-to-be-provided-where-personal-data-have-not-been-obtained-from-the) - [**Article Article 18** — Right to restriction of processing](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/gdpr/article-18-right-to-restriction-of-processing) - [**Article Article 19** — Notification obligation regarding rectification or erasure of personal data or restriction of processing](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/gdpr/article-19-notification-obligation-regarding-rectification-or-erasure-of-personal-data-or) - [**Article Article 10** — Processing of personal data relating to criminal convictions and offences](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/gdpr/article-10-processing-of-personal-data-relating-to-criminal-convictions-and-offences) ## References - [European Union — GDPR](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2016/679/oj) - Catalogue identifier: `Article Article 3` Topics: governance riskcontinuous monitoringpolicy managementprivacy management ## Related compliance guidance - [GDPR compliance: a practical implementation guide for cloud-native SaaS teams](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/gdpr): Start with the full GDPR implementation guide — scope, roadmap, evidence and how the assessment runs. - [ISO/IEC 27001:2022 compliance: a practical implementation guide](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/iso-27001-2022): The security management system most EU procurement teams ask for alongside a DPA; its controls supply much of the Article 32 evidence. - [India's DPDP Act 2023: a practical compliance guide for cloud teams](https://support.icompaas.com/compliance/india-dpdp-act-2023): If engineering or support teams sit in India, the same data flows are also subject to India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act.