AI Act Article 35: Identification numbers and lists of notified bodies

What this article means in practice

Written by Engage Compliance. The text above is the article itself, reproduced from its official source and unchanged. Everything in this section is ours, and last read against the current text on 2026-10-14.

Every notified body gets one Commission identification number, even when it is notified under several Union acts. Article 35 also requires an up-to-date public list showing the body's notified activities, so a number alone does not tell a provider that the body can assess its particular AI system.

Who it binds

• The Commission assigns the number under Article 35(1) and publishes and maintains the list under Article 35(2). The article does not direct AI providers to apply for their own notified-body number.
• The subjects of the list are bodies notified under the AI Act. Their listed activities matter because Article 35(2) requires those activities to appear alongside their identification numbers.

What it makes somebody do

• The Commission. Assign a single identification number to each notified body under Article 35(1), including where that body is notified under more than one Union act.
• The Commission. Make the list publicly available, with numbers and notified activities, and keep it up to date under Article 35(2).
• Notifying authorities. Notify only conformity assessment bodies that satisfy the Article 31 requirements, as Article 30(1) states; this is a separate step from the Commission's numbering and listing work.
• A notified body using a subcontractor or subsidiary. Check the Article 31 requirements and inform the notifying authority under Article 33(1). A listed body remains subject to that separate rule when distributing assessment work.

What it does not say

• A notified body's identification number is not an AI-system certificate. Article 35 identifies bodies and their activities; it does not record a conformity decision about a provider's product.
• One number across several Union acts under Article 35(1) does not mean every activity under those acts is interchangeable. Check the activities stated in the Article 35(2) list.
• Listing and subcontracting answer different questions. The Commission list identifies the notified body, while Article 33(1) sets conditions for specific tasks passed to another body.
• For a provider selecting an assessor, the practical check suggested by Article 35(2) is therefore the current entry and relevant activity, rather than the presence of a familiar identification number on a document.