Where the European Parliament and the Council confer implementing powers on the Commission pursuant to Article 291 TFEU for acts listed in Article 1(2), the Authority may draft implementing technical standards. Those standards must be technical, not imply strategic decisions or policy choices, and determine conditions of application. The Authority submits drafts to the Commission and forwards them to Parliament and Council; it must conduct open public consultations and analyse costs and benefits unless disproportionate or urgent, and seek the advice of the Securities and Markets Stakeholder Group (Article 37). The Commission has three months (plus one-month extension) to decide, may adopt, adopt in part or amend for Union interests, and if it intends not to adopt or to amend must return the draft with reasons; the Authority has six weeks to amend and resubmit as a formal opinion. If no compliant amendment is submitted, the Commission may adopt with its amendments or reject; the Commission shall not change Authority content without prior coordination.

If the Authority misses the legislative time limit in Article 1(2), the Commission may request the draft within a new time limit and the Authority must inform Parliament, Council and Commission if it will not comply. Only where the Authority fails to submit under paragraph 2 may the Commission adopt an implementing technical standard without an Authority draft. The Commission shall conduct public consultations and cost–benefit analyses unless disproportionate or urgent and seek the Securities and Markets Stakeholder Group's advice; it forwards drafts to Parliament and Council and sends them to the Authority, which has six weeks to submit a formal opinion. If no amendment is submitted the Commission may adopt; if an amended draft is submitted the Commission may amend on that basis or adopt with relevant amendments. Implementing technical standards are adopted by regulation or decision, must bear the words "implementing technical standard" in the title, be published in the Official Journal of the European Union and enter into force on the stated date.