Federal Council AI regulatory approach (2025): requirements, deadlines and compliance actions
Federal Council decision on the regulation of artificial intelligence: ratification of the Council of Europe Convention and sector-specific adjustments
What is Federal Council AI regulatory approach (2025)?
On 12 February 2025 the Federal Council decided how Switzerland will regulate AI: it will ratify the Council of Europe Framework Convention on AI and implement it mainly through targeted changes to existing law where needed (for example transparency, data protection and non-discrimination), avoid a horizontal AI act, and complement legislation with non-binding measures such as self-regulation and agreements with industry. Federal departments were tasked to prepare a consultation draft by the end of 2026.
Who does it apply to?
Sets direction for federal law-making; creates no obligations until implementing legislation is adopted.
- Sectors
- Cross-sector / all sectors
- AI use cases
- AI in public services
When do the requirements apply?
2025-02-12: Federal Council decision; end of 2026: consultation draft due.
| Date | Milestone | Source reference | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Consultation draft on ratification and legal amendments Deadline set by the Federal Council for the consultation draft. |
— | Scheduled confidence: medium |
Dates are taken from the linked official source; a reviewer should confirm in-force and application dates before relying on them.
Official sources
-
Federal Council wants to ratify the Council of Europe Convention on AI
Swiss Federal Council · 12 Feb 2025 · Tier 1 source
Change history
Record version 1: Added in the September 2026 global coverage expansion from the official source listed; reviewer to confirm dates, status and scope against the source text.. Full edit history is in the GitHub repository.
Informational only, not legal advice. Verify every claim against the linked official sources and consult qualified counsel before acting.