---
type: Right
title: "Leaving is your right — and the exit fee is dying."
description: "Switching between cloud services is protected now; switching charges end 12 Jan 2027."
tags: ["right", "eu-data-act"]
instrument: eu-data-act
articles: [23, 25, 29, 30]
applies_from: 2025-09-12
attaches_to: ["cloud", "cloud-ai"]
pairs_with: []
legal_review: none
# Dated phases, for the rulebook's time axis. Every date is one of the
# Act's milestones; verify checks it.
phases:
  - { date: 2025-09-12, what: "Switching protected; only cost-based charges" }
  - { date: 2027-01-12, what: "Switching charges end" }
generated: { by: claude-code/opus-5.5, at: "2026-10-09T00:00:00Z" }
status: draft
sources:
  - id: eli
    resource: "https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/2854/oj/eng"
    title: "Regulation (EU) 2023/2854"
  - id: prototype
    resource: "https://github.com/DavidJCrawford/stewardship-explorer/blob/main/src/data/rights.json"
    title: "stewardship-explorer rights.json"
---

# The right

**Leaving is your right — and the exit fee is dying.** Switching between cloud services is protected now; switching charges end 12 Jan 2027.

Contracts must spell out the exit: notice, a maximum transition period, retrieval of your data, then provable erasure. Until January 2027 they may charge only their actual costs; after that, nothing.[^eli]

# The law behind it

[Article 23](/law/eu-data-act/articles/article-23.md), [Article 25](/law/eu-data-act/articles/article-25.md), [Article 29](/law/eu-data-act/articles/article-29.md), [Article 30](/law/eu-data-act/articles/article-30.md). Applies from 2025-09-12.

# Where it lives in the building

[cloud](/building/components/cloud.md), [cloud-ai](/building/components/cloud-ai.md)

# The wider rulebook

None. This right stands alone.

[^eli]: Regulation (EU) 2023/2854