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Document 32025R1466
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1466 of 22 July 2025 amending Implementing Regulation (EU) No 520/2012 on the performance of pharmacovigilance activities provided for in Regulation (EC) No 726/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Directive 2001/83/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1466 of 22 July 2025 amending Implementing Regulation (EU) No 520/2012 on the performance of pharmacovigilance activities provided for in Regulation (EC) No 726/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Directive 2001/83/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1466 of 22 July 2025 amending Implementing Regulation (EU) No 520/2012 on the performance of pharmacovigilance activities provided for in Regulation (EC) No 726/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Directive 2001/83/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council
C/2025/4827
OJ L, 2025/1466, 23.7.2025, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2025/1466/oj (BG, ES, CS, DA, DE, ET, EL, EN, FR, GA, HR, IT, LV, LT, HU, MT, NL, PL, PT, RO, SK, SL, FI, SV)
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Official Journal |
EN L series |
2025/1466 |
23.7.2025 |
COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING REGULATION (EU) 2025/1466
of 22 July 2025
amending Implementing Regulation (EU) No 520/2012 on the performance of pharmacovigilance activities provided for in Regulation (EC) No 726/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Directive 2001/83/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council
(Text with EEA relevance)
THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,
Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 726/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 laying down Union procedures for the authorisation and supervision of medicinal products for human use and establishing a European Medicines Agency (1), and in particular Article 87a thereof,
Having regard to Directive 2001/83/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 November 2001 on the Community code relating to medicinal products for human use (2), and in particular Article 108 thereof,
Whereas:
(1) |
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 520/2012 (3) sets out certain implementing measures for the performance of pharmacovigilance activities. In light of practical experience in applying that Implementing Regulation, technical and scientific progress, and international harmonisation in pharmacovigilance, it is appropriate to review it, while guaranteeing the same level of public health protection. |
(2) |
Implementing Regulation (EU) No 520/2012 sets out, among other things, the content of the pharmacovigilance system master file. To avoid unnecessary administrative burden for applicants and competent authorities, only significant deviations from the pharmacovigilance procedures, their impact and their management should be documented in the pharmacovigilance system master file until resolved. |
(3) |
Marketing authorisation holders may subcontract certain activities of the pharmacovigilance system to third parties, for example to specialised service providers. Where the pharmacovigilance tasks have been subcontracted by the marketing authorisation holder to a third party (or by this third party to another third party), delegation arrangements, each party’s responsibilities, and audit and inspection arrangements should be clearly documented. Third parties should agree to be audited by or on behalf of marketing authorisation holders and inspected by the competent authorities in order to guarantee and verify compliance concerning all aspects of the pharmacovigilance system. |
(4) |
Marketing authorisation holders are to establish quality systems for the performance of pharmacovigilance activities pursuant to Article 8(1) of Implementing Regulation (EU) No 520/2012. In accordance with Article 13 of that Regulation, those quality systems are to be audited. In order to ensure better efficiency of audits, the content of those audits should be further defined in this Regulation. The third party subcontracted to carry out pharmacovigilance tasks in whole or in part on behalf of or in conjunction with marketing authorisation holders should be audited by or on behalf of the marketing authorisation holder and may be inspected by the competent authorities, irrespective of whether or not this obligation is mentioned in the subcontract. It is important that subcontractors have clarity about their obligations, which should be set out in the subcontract, but a subcontract’s shortcomings should not affect the performance of audits and inspections. |
(5) |
The Eudravigilance database is the system for managing and analysing information on adverse reactions to medicines that have been authorised or are being studied in clinical trials. The European Medicines Agency (‘the Agency’) and national competent authorities continuously monitor the data in the Eudravigilance database. The database is also accessible to marketing authorisation holders to the extent necessary for them to fulfil their pharmacovigilance obligations. Based on the experience acquired from marketing authorisation holders’ monitoring of the data in the Eudravigilance database, the requirements for marketing authorisation holders should be clarified, including the requirements for signal validation and subsequent notification to the Agency and national competent authorities. |
(6) |
In order to facilitate the interoperability of systems, avoid the duplication of encoding activities concerning the same information and allow for an easier exchange of information, this Regulation takes into account developments in international standards used by marketing authorisation holders, national competent authorities and the Agency for the performance of pharmacovigilance activities, as well as the need for certain updates to terminology. |
(7) |
Suspected adverse reactions to a medicinal product are reported to the Eudravigilance database by means of individual case safety reports. The reports should be as complete as possible, but in order to ensure some standardisation of reports, minimum reporting requirements should apply in all cases. |
(8) |
For better literature referencing in individual case safety reports, Member States and marketing authorisation holders should provide the digital object identifier (DOI), if available, when reporting suspected adverse reactions. |
(9) |
In order to clarify and strengthen the content of the periodic safety update report, that report should include updates on the implementation of risk minimisation measures. |
(10) |
If national competent authorities, the Agency or the Commission have concerns about the safety of a medicinal product, they may oblige a marketing authorisation holder to initiate, manage and finance non-interventional post-authorisation safety studies. In order for them to be transparent, the marketing authorisation holder should put such studies in the electronic post-authorisation study register maintained by the Agency. |
(11) |
Implementing Regulation (EU) No 520/2012 should therefore be amended accordingly. |
(12) |
The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use, |
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1
Implementing Regulation (EU) No 520/2012 is amended as follows:
(1) |
in Article 2, point (2) is replaced by the following:
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(2) |
in Article 4, paragraph 3 is replaced by the following: ‘3. Any major or critical deviations from the pharmacovigilance procedures, their impact and their management shall be documented in the pharmacovigilance system master file until resolved.’ |
(3) |
in Article 6, the following paragraphs 3 and 4 are added: ‘3. Without prejudice to the second sentence of paragraph 1 and to Article 11(2), the marketing authorisation holder shall include in the subcontracts the following elements:
This paragraph applies mutatis mutandis to the third parties that subcontract the tasks subcontracted to them by the marketing authorisation holder. 4. Third parties shall not subcontract any pharmacovigilance task assigned to them by the marketing authorisation holder without the marketing authorisation holder’s written consent.’ |
(4) |
in Article 11 paragraph 1, point (d) is replaced by the following:
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(5) |
Article 13 is amended as follows:
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(6) |
in Article 17, paragraph 1 is replaced by the following: ‘1. The national competent authorities and the Agency shall perform risk-based audits of the quality system at regular intervals according to a common methodology to ensure that it complies with the requirements set out in Articles 8, 14, 15 and 16 and to determine its effectiveness. The audits shall cover a defined period and verify the conformity of relevant pharmacovigilance activities concerned by the audit with the policies, processes and procedures of the quality system.’ |
(7) |
in Article 18, paragraphs 2 and 3 are replaced by the following: ‘2. Marketing authorisation holders shall monitor the data available in the Eudravigilance database and use it together with data from other available sources. 3. National competent authorities and the Agency shall ensure the continuous monitoring of the Eudravigilance database with a frequency proportionate to the identified risks, the potential risks and the need for additional information.’ |
(8) |
in Article 19(1), the third subparagraph is replaced by the following: ‘For the purpose of monitoring data in the Eudravigilance database, only signals related to a suspected adverse reaction shall be considered.’; |
(9) |
in Article 21, paragraph 2 is deleted; |
(10) |
in Article 21, paragraphs 3 and 4 are replaced by the following: ‘3. Where it is considered that a signal validated by a national competent authority or the Agency requires further analysis, it shall be confirmed as soon as possible and no later than 30 days from its receipt as follows:
When analysing the validated signal, national competent authorities and the Agency may take into account other information available on the medicinal product. Where the validity of the signal is not confirmed, special attention shall be paid to non-confirmed signals concerning a medicinal product where those signals are subsequently followed by new signals concerning the same medicinal product. 4. Without prejudice to paragraph 3, national competent authorities and the Agency shall validate and confirm any signal that they have detected during their continuous monitoring of the Eudravigilance database.’ |
(11) |
in Article 23, subparagraph 2 is replaced by the following: ‘The Agency shall also ensure appropriate support for the use of the Eudravigilance database by marketing authorisation holders.’; |
(12) |
in Article 25, paragraphs 1 and 2 are replaced by the following: ‘1. For the classification, retrieval, presentation, risk-benefit evaluation and assessment, electronic exchange and communication of pharmacovigilance and medicinal product information, Member States, marketing authorisation holders and the Agency shall use the following terminology:
2. Member States, national competent authorities or marketing authorisation holders shall request the International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use, the European Pharmacopoeia Commission, the European Committee for Standardization, or the International Organization for Standardization to add a new term to the terminology referred to in paragraph 1, where necessary. In such a case, they shall inform the Agency accordingly.’ |
(13) |
Article 26 is amended as follows:
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(14) |
Article 28 is amended as follows:
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(15) |
in Article 34, paragraph 3 is replaced by the following: ‘3. The periodic safety update report shall contain updates on the implementation of the risk minimisation measures and the results of assessments of the effectiveness of risk minimisation activities relevant to the risk-benefit assessment.’ |
(16) |
in Article 36, paragraph 5 is added: ‘5. The marketing authorisation holder shall enter the study protocol, the abstract of the final study report and the final study report in the electronic post-authorisation study register maintained by the Agency. The marketing authorisation holder shall submit electronically to the register the study protocol before the start of the data collection and the abstract of the final study report within one month after the finalisation of the final study report.’ |
(17) |
in part III of Annex II ‘Format of the electronic periodic safety update reports’, point 16.5 is amended as follows:
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(18) |
in Section 3 of Annex III ‘Format of the final study report’, point 5(f) is amended as follows:
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Article 2
Entry into force and application
This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
It shall apply from 12 February 2026.
However, Article 1, points (7) and (9) shall apply from its entry into force.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.
Done at Brussels, 22 July 2025.
For the Commission
The President
Ursula VON DER LEYEN
(1) OJ L 136, 30.4.2004, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2004/726/oj.
(2) OJ L 311, 28.11.2001, p. 67, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2001/83/oj.
(3) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 520/2012 of 19 June 2012 on the performance of pharmacovigilance activities provided for in Regulation (EC) No 726/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Directive 2001/83/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 159, 20.6.2012, p. 5, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2012/520/oj).
ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2025/1466/oj
ISSN 1977-0677 (electronic edition)