Germany activates AI labelling rules with fines up to €35m for non-compliance
The KI-MIG enforcement regime took effect on 2 August, bringing the EU AI Act into German law with strict labelling duties and a tiered penalty system.
Germany's enforcement mechanism for the EU AI Act came into force on 2 August, imposing a legal obligation on anyone using artificial intelligence for professional or commercial content to label it clearly. The legislation, known as the KI-MIG (Künstliche-Intelligenz-Marktüberwachungsgesetz), sets out which authorities will police compliance and how steep the penalties can be.
The rule applies to monetised influencers, digital marketers, publishers, agencies and businesses. Private, non-monetised accounts are exempt. Text that has been human-edited and published under a person's legal and editorial responsibility does not need a label, nor does content that is obviously AI-generated or animated. Artistic and satirical works receive limited leeway, but deepfakes must carry an obvious disclosure.
Penalties scaled to severity
Fines are tiered. Posting unlabelled AI content in a commercial context can attract up to €15 million or three per cent of global turnover. Deliberately manipulative uses, such as deceptive deepfakes, push the ceiling to €35 million or seven per cent of turnover. Minor administrative slip-ups, like incomplete technical documentation, are capped at €50,000. The law states that penalties will be proportionally reduced for small businesses and individuals.
Enforcement and recourse
The Bundesnetzagentur (BNetzA), Germany's federal network agency, acts as the default AI regulator for most content creators. State bodies, transport operators and financial firms answer to separate supervisors, but BNetzA's central complaints office will redirect any misdirected reports. Anyone fined can challenge the decision through the standard administrative court process. Employees who report their employer's AI misuse are now covered by Germany's whistle-blower protection law.
The EU AI Act itself entered into force on 1 August 2024, giving member states a short window to designate national supervisors. Germany's decision to avoid "gold-plating" the directive means the compliance burden mirrors the Brussels text exactly, a relief for firms operating across borders.
