Law: The Law of Turkmenistan of 20 March 2017 on Information on Private Life and its Protection No. 519-V (only available in Russian here) (the Law on Information)

Regulator: The Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan (the Cabinet)

Summary: On July 1, 2017, the Law of Turkmenistan of March 20, 2017 on Information on Private Life and its Protection No. 519-V (only available in Russian here) (the Law on Information) came into force, which primarily regulates data protection in Turkmenistan. Moreover, personal information protection in the country is also based on the Constitution of Turkmenistan (only available in Russian here) and other regulatory legal acts. The Law on Information provides for data subject rights, data controller obligations, data transfer restrictions, sanctions for non-compliance, and general principles for the collection and processing of personal information. The Law on Information does not, however, contain Data Protection Impact Assessment requirements, nor does it address the appointment of data protection officers. In addition to the Law on Information, the Code for Criminal Liability of May 10, 2010 No. 104-IV (only available in Russian here) provides protection against cybercrimes, and further provisions applicable to data protection can be found in other legislation such as the Code of Turkmenistan of August 29, 2013 No. 422-IV on Administrative Offenses (only available in Russian here).