Where an actual impact cannot be ended or minimised, the company must, as a last resort, refrain from new or extended relationships, suspend where the law allows, and adopt an enhanced corrective action plan, after assessing whether suspension would cause manifestly more severe harm.
The requirement, in our words
Where an actual adverse impact cannot be brought to an end or its extent minimised, the company must, as a final step and for as long as the impact persists, refrain from new or extended relationships with the partner, suspend the relationship for the activities concerned where the governing law allows, and adopt and implement without undue delay an enhanced corrective action plan where success is reasonably expected; while that expectation lasts, continued engagement alone does not attract penalties or liability. Before suspending it must weigh whether suspension would cause manifestly more severe harm and, if so, may continue and justify the choice to the supervisor; a suspension requires mitigation of its effects, reasonable notice and review, and a decision not to suspend requires monitoring and periodic reassessment.
Why it matters
The actual-impact route mirrors the potential-impact route but aims at remediation, not prevention. The corrective plan has to address the harm that has already occurred, and the suspension decision has the same harm assessment. A company that continues the relationship must monitor the impact and revisit the decision.
What changed
The old Article 11(7) allowed suspension as a last resort. The replacement adds the no-new-relationship step, the enhanced corrective plan, the harm assessment and the reporting route.
What to do
- Write the enhanced corrective action plan with remediation steps, owners and deadlines.
- Assess the consequences of suspension before any decision.
- If the relationship continues, monitor the impact and reassess the decision.
Evidence to have ready
| Category | Artefact |
|---|---|
| Remediation and exit | Enhanced corrective action plan with remediation steps, owners and deadlines |
| Remediation and exit | Documented assessment of the consequences of suspension before any decision |
| Remediation and exit | Monitoring reports on the actual impact where the relationship continues |
Common failures
- Corrective plan drafted but not put into effect without undue delay
- No supervisor-ready justification for continuing a relationship linked to an ongoing impact
Dates
Transposition by 26 July 2028; application from 26 July 2029.
The question to test
Does the corrective plan address the harm already caused, or only the future risk?
Cross-references
A4-9 Prioritisation protection · A4-10 Potential impact last resort · A4-13 Five-year monitoring
Source
Article 4(9), replacing Article 11(7) of Directive (EU) 2024/1760; OJ L 2026/470, 26 February 2026; https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:32026L0470. Our statement of the duty, read from the Official Journal text and the held control record, not the instrument verbatim.
Not legal advice; does not certify. A reading of the duty and the evidence commonly sampled, not a substitute for the Official Journal text, the national transposing measure or your auditor's judgement.