The Data Act: your right to switch to another cloud service
The Data Act is a European law that regulates, among other things, making it easier to switch from one cloud service to another. In Dutch it's called the Dataverordening (Regulation (EU) 2023/2854). It has applied since 12 September 2025. In this article you'll read in plain language what it regulates for switching. This is explanation, not legal advice.
For which services?
Chapter VI of the Data Act (articles 23 to 31) covers switching between data processing services. This includes the common online services where your data is stored, such as storage, email and collaborating in the cloud. There are exceptions: for services that are largely custom-built for one customer, and for test versions (article 31).
What the Data Act regulates when switching
- Agreements on paper. How switching works must be stated in a written contract, and the provider must help you with your switch (article 25).
- Notice period. To start a switch, the provider may request a notice period of at most two months.
- Transition period. After that comes a transition period of at most 30 days during which the service keeps working and the switch is carried out. If this is not technically feasible, the provider must report this within 14 working days and the period may be at most seven months.
- Retrieving data. After the transition period you have at least 30 days to retrieve your data. After that, the provider must delete it completely.
- Which data and which format. The contract must describe which data you can take with you. If there is no agreed standard for such a service, the provider must export your data on request in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format (article 30).
- Switching costs. Until 12 January 2027, a provider may only charge reduced switching costs, not higher than its own costs. From 12 January 2027, it may no longer charge switching costs at all (article 29). The regular subscription for the service doesn't fall under this: you pay that for as long as the agreement runs.
What the Data Act doesn't do for you
The Data Act makes switching easier, but it doesn't transfer your data for you. An export that your new service can't read is of little use to you. That's why open standards matter: files stay regular files, mail goes via IMAP, calendars as .ics files and contacts as .vcf files. So export the data yourself, and check whether you can open the files with your new service.
Does it involve personal data of others, such as your customers or members? Then the GDPR also provides rules for what happens to that data when the service ends. If you're unsure about your own situation, ask a lawyer.
Leaving WebOké
With WebOké you retrieve your data yourself in My WebOké and in your products: download a backup of your website and databases, copy your mail via IMAP, export your Nextcloud, move your domain using the transfer code and download your customer data. How this works per product, and what happens when you cancel, can be read in Leaving WebOké: how to take your data with you.
Here's how to go about it in practice:
- Cancel as of the expiry date. Your package then keeps working until the end of the period you've already paid for, without a renewal invoice.
- Use that period to export everything and check with your new service whether you can open it.
- Don't wait until the last day: copying a large mailbox or website can take hours.
- Did you still forget something? On request we can restore from our backup for up to 30 days after termination. Contact support for this.