A European Enterprise Just Asked Who Qualifies as the 'Importer' of Your US-Built AI Hiring Tool Under the EU AI Act: Answering the Article 31 Questions
A customer questionnaire just landed in your inbox. The procurement team at a European enterprise is evaluating your AI hiring tool, and buried on page four is a question you haven't seen before: "Does your company qualify as the EU AI Act importer of this system, or have you designated an EU-based importer? Please describe the importer's obligations and how they are fulfilled."
If your company is based outside the EU and you sell directly into the EU market, this question is about you — specifically about Article 31 of the EU AI Act, which sets out what importers must do before placing a high-risk AI system on the EU market.
Here's how to answer it.
What Article 31 actually requires
The EU AI Act defines an importer as any natural or legal person established in the EU that places a high-risk AI system from a third country on the EU market. If your company is headquartered in the US (or anywhere outside the EU) and you're selling into the EU, your EU entity, EU distributor, or EU reseller partner may qualify as the importer.
Article 31 says the importer must verify — before placing the system on the market — that:
- The provider has carried out the appropriate conformity assessment procedure
- The provider has drawn up the technical documentation and affixed CE marking (where required)
- The system is accompanied by instructions for use in a language understood by deployers and users in the relevant member state
- The provider has a registered EU representative (under Article 30) or the importer itself assumes those obligations
The importer must also keep a copy of the EU declaration of conformity and the technical documentation for ten years, and cooperate with national competent authorities if requested.
How to answer the questionnaire question
If you have an EU entity that places the system on the market, that entity is the importer. Describe what that entity has verified before selling: that conformity was assessed, that documentation exists, that CE marking has been applied (if applicable), and that a point of contact for authorities is available.
If you sell directly from a non-EU entity to EU customers with no EU intermediary, you may need to designate an EU authorised representative under Article 30 (who takes on some importer-adjacent obligations) or work with a distribution partner who qualifies as an importer.
For most B2B SaaS hiring tools sold via subscription, the practical answer is: "Our EU entity [name] acts as the importer for EU customers. Prior to making the system available, [entity name] verified that the conformity assessment had been completed, that the EU declaration of conformity and technical documentation were in place, and that CE marking had been applied. A copy of the declaration and technical documentation is held by [entity name] and available to competent authorities upon request."
Why procurement teams ask this
Enterprise customers in Germany, France, and the Netherlands increasingly ask about Article 31 because their own legal teams want to know who is liable if a high-risk AI system is found to be non-compliant. If no one qualifies as the importer — or the importer hasn't done the verification steps — the customer may inherit exposure. Answering this question clearly demonstrates that the supply chain is legally structured, not just technically functional.
The faster way to answer questionnaires like this
When a procurement team sends a questionnaire with questions about Article 31 importer obligations, Article 30 authorised representatives, and conformity documentation, the challenge isn't knowing the answer — it's generating a clean, defensible written response quickly enough that you don't lose the deal.
That's exactly what Complizo is built for. Paste in the questionnaire, describe your system, and get a draft answer for every question — including the Article 31 importer section — in minutes.
Try Complizo free at complizo.com