---
title: "Recital 164 GDPR"
canonical: "https://dposchool.com/gdpr/recital/164"
source: "https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32016R0679#rct_164"
source_note: "Source: Regulation (EU) 2016/679, Official Journal L 119, 4.5.2016, as corrected. Only the text published in the Official Journal is authentic. © European Union, https://eur-lex.europa.eu"
text_as_of: "2026-10-28"
last_reviewed: "2026-10-29"
language: "en"
publisher: "DPO School"
---

Recitals

# Recital 164

Text as of 28 October 2026 · [Reviewed by Sergio Maldonado Elvira on 29 October 2026](https://dposchool.com/gdpr/about#review)

## Official text

As regards the powers of the supervisory authorities to obtain from the controller or processor access to personal data and access to their premises, Member States may adopt by law, within the limits of this Regulation, specific rules in order to safeguard the professional or other equivalent secrecy obligations, in so far as necessary to reconcile the right to the protection of personal data with an obligation of professional secrecy. This is without prejudice to existing Member State obligations to adopt rules on professional secrecy where required by Union law.

## Source

Source: Regulation (EU) 2016/679, Official Journal L 119, 4.5.2016, as corrected. Only the text published in the Official Journal is authentic. © European Union, https://eur-lex.europa.eu

[Recital 164 on EUR-Lex](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32016R0679#rct_164)

Text as of 28 October 2026.

This is reference material, not legal advice.

## Related articles

This list is under review.

- [Article 87: Processing of the national identification number](https://dposchool.com/gdpr/article/87)
- [Article 90: Obligations of secrecy](https://dposchool.com/gdpr/article/90)

## Navigation

[GDPR Navigator](https://dposchool.com/gdpr) / [Recitals](https://dposchool.com/gdpr/recitals) / Recital 164

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