TITLE: Belarus National Center of Legislation and Legal Information Opens Public Consultation on Personal Data Protection Law Amendments
BODY:
On July 13, 2026, the National Center of Legislation and Legal Information of the Republic of Belarus opened a public consultation on a draft law amending personal data protection legislation. The consultation period runs until July 22, 2026, and has attracted 8,136 views and 88 comments from 22 participants as of the consultation deadline.
The draft law proposes amendments to the Law of the Republic of Belarus of May 7, 2021, No. 99-Z "On the Protection of Personal Data" (Law No. 99-Z), as well as conforming amendments to other Belarusian legislation. The proposed changes aim to reduce administrative burden on organisations processing personal data; enhance protection of citizens' personal data when processed using modern technologies including video surveillance, audio recording, and automated data processing; codify established practices in applying Law No. 99-Z provisions; and clarify the functions of the National Center for Personal Data Protection regarding legal education of citizens and engagement with the professional community working on personal data protection in organisations.
Key proposals under consultation include expanding grounds for processing personal data without consent, such as for contracts benefiting third parties and administrative procedures; establishing specific retention periods for video surveillance (15 calendar days for residential building common areas); prohibiting selective employee monitoring without written consent and collective agreement provisions; establishing appeal procedures for automated decisions within 10 working days; clarifying data processor cooperation arrangements; and extending the transition period for bringing contracts with authorised persons into compliance from one year to 18 months. Participants have submitted detailed suggestions addressing administrative burden reduction, technology-specific protections, codification of existing practices, and harmonisation of terminology across sectoral laws.
The consultation closes on July 22, 2026. Submissions will be reviewed by site moderators but will not be treated as formal citizen petitions under Belarusian administrative procedure law.