# The Fundamental Rights Impact Assessment (FRIA) in the AI Act: Roots, legal obligations and key elements for a model template

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2411.15149 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2411.15149/

## Key facts

- Cited by 7 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 7 Nov 2024.

## Built on by (most cited first, 7 of 7)

- [AI and Human Oversight: A Risk-Based Framework for Alignment](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2510.09090/) (2025)
- [Developing an Ontology for AI Act Fundamental Rights Impact Assessments](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2501.10391/) (2024)
- [The EU AI Act and the Rights-based Approach to Technological Governance](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2603.22920/) (2026)
- [It's complicated. The relationship of algorithmic fairness and non-discrimination provisions for high-risk systems in the EU AI Act](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2501.12962/) (2025)
- [Position: EU AI Act's Research Exemptions Can Break the Publication Norms of Major AI Conferences](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2506.03218/) (2025)
- [Algorithmic Administration and the EU AI Act: Legal Principles for Public Sector Use of AI](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2604.22765/) (2026)
- [Scaling, Lock-In, and Proxy Compliance: A Political Economy of Responsible AI](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2607.28023/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

What is the context which gave rise to the obligation to carry out a Fundamental Rights Impact Assessment (FRIA) in the AI Act? How has assessment of the impact on fundamental rights been framed by the EU legislator in the AI Act? What methodological criteria should be followed in developing the FRIA? These are the three main research questions that this article aims to address, through both legal analysis of the relevant provisions of the AI Act and discussion of various possible models for assessment of the impact of AI on fundamental rights. The overall objective of this article is to fill existing gaps in the theoretical and methodological elaboration of the FRIA, as outlined in the AI Act. In order to facilitate the future work of EU and national bodies and AI operators in placing this key tool for human-centric and trustworthy AI at the heart of the EU approach to AI design and development, this article outlines the main building blocks of a model template for the FRIA. While this proposal is consistent with the rationale and scope of the AI Act, it is also applicable beyond the cases listed in Article 27 and can serve as a blueprint for other national and international regulatory initiatives to ensure that AI is fully consistent with human rights.