About PrivacyLawApplies.com
A free educational tool for privacy law applicability assessment — built by a certified compliance professional, with statutory citations on every result.
This tool was built by a compliance professional with hands-on experience assessing privacy law obligations for organisations across financial services, technology, and healthcare sectors in the EU, UK, North America, and Asia-Pacific. The author has applied GDPR, CCPA, PIPEDA, and related frameworks in operational compliance contexts — not just academic study.
The global gold standard in financial crime compliance. Demonstrates operational expertise in regulatory compliance frameworks.
Issued by the International Association of Privacy Professionals. Covers AI governance, ethics, and data protection law as applied to AI systems.
Why we built this tool
Privacy law is genuinely complex — and it is getting more complex every year. Small businesses, startups, and solo operators face identical compliance obligations to large enterprises, but without dedicated legal teams or compliance budgets. A GDPR fine can reach €20 million. A CCPA violation can cost $7,988 per incident. A missed breach notification can compound penalties significantly.
When we looked at the resources available to help smaller organisations understand their obligations, we found a consistent gap: most tools are either too generic ("you probably need to comply with GDPR"), too expensive (enterprise compliance software), or too narrow (only covering one law).
PrivacyLawApplies.com was built to fill that gap — a free, multi-jurisdiction, statutory-citation-based tool that gives a straight answer to the question every founder eventually asks: which privacy laws actually apply to my business?
What this tool covers
Every obligation and applicability determination cites the specific article or section of law it derives from — so you can verify it independently.
GDPR, UK GDPR, CCPA/CPRA, PIPEDA, Quebec Law 25, LGPD, Australian Privacy Act, India DPDP Act, UAE PDPL — and counting.
Penalty figures, thresholds, and obligations reflect current law — including 2026 CPI-adjusted CCPA thresholds and Australia's December 2026 automated decision-making changes.
Privacy law evolves rapidly. All content is reviewed on a regular cadence and marked with a last-reviewed date. Last comprehensive review: April 2026.
What this tool is not
Legal advice or a legal opinion on your specific situation
A substitute for consultation with a qualified privacy lawyer or compliance professional
A guarantee of comprehensive coverage — privacy laws are complex and jurisdiction-specific
A regulatory filing, certification, or compliance documentation
How we research and maintain content
Every applicability determination on this site is derived directly from the text of the relevant legislation and cross-referenced with official regulatory guidance from the applicable supervisory authority (EDPB for GDPR, ICO for UK GDPR, CPPA for CCPA, OPC for PIPEDA, and so on). We do not rely on secondary sources for legal thresholds, penalties, or obligations.
Content is reviewed on a regular cadence — with immediate updates when a significant regulatory development occurs (a new enforcement decision, a revised threshold figure, an updated regulatory guide). Each law hub page is marked with its last-reviewed date. If you spot an inaccuracy, contact us and we will review it promptly.
You can subscribe to update notifications on the results page — we email only when laws affecting your specific assessment results change.
Legal disclaimer
PrivacyLawApplies.com provides general educational information about privacy law applicability. Nothing on this site constitutes legal advice or creates a solicitor-client or attorney-client relationship. Privacy law is complex and jurisdiction-specific. Always consult a qualified privacy lawyer or compliance professional before making compliance decisions.
Run the free assessment
Find out which privacy laws apply to your business — with exact statutory citations. Free, in under 4 minutes.
Start assessment →