The guide, unveiled on Monday, also contains information on what remedies are available for individuals, if they consider their data has been misused and their data protection rights have not been respected.
Companies are also now able to sign up to the privacy shield with the US Department of Commerce, who will then verify that their privacy policies comply with the requisite data protection standards.
The new data transfer deal was officially adopted by the Commission last month, bringing to a close some nine months of limbo in the wake of the European Court of Justice decision to topple the predecessor framework last year.
Speaking at a news conference in Brussels on Monday, Věra Jourová, the European justice, consumers and gender equality Commissioner, said: "The EU-US privacy shield protects the fundamental rights of Europeans and ensures legal certainty for businesses, including European companies, transferring personal data to the US"
She added, "The privacy shield ensures easier redress for individuals in case of any complaints. I am therefore confident that the privacy shield will restore the trust of Europeans in the way their personal data are transferred across the Atlantic and processed by companies there."
The official went on, "I encourage companies to sign up and I invite citizens to find out about their rights under the privacy shield in the 'citizens' guide' we are publishing today."
The privacy shield guarantees that everyone in the EU has a number of rights when their data is processed, such as the right to ask a company for further information about the data they hold about them, or to amend their records if the data are outdated or inaccurate.
They will also benefit from several accessible and affordable dispute resolution mechanisms. Ideally, the complaint will be resolved by the company itself; or free of charge alternative dispute resolution (ADR) solutions will be offered.
Individuals can also go to their national data protection authorities, who will work with the US Department of Commerce and Federal Trade Commission to ensure that complaints by EU citizens are investigated and resolved.
If a case is not resolved by any of the other means, as a last resort there will be an arbitration mechanism. Redress regarding possible access to personal data for national security purposes will be handled by a new Ombudsperson who is independent from the US intelligence services.
However, the influential Working Party 29 body (WP29) - which is made up of the heads of the various member states' data protection agencies - remains critical of the privacy shield.
In a statement issued last month, the WP29 said it remains concerned about various commercial aspects of the framework, flagging up the lack of specific rules on automated decisions and of a general right to object as problems. It also criticised a lack of clarity about how privacy shield principles apply to processors.
The body also expressed ongoing concern about access by public authorities to data transferred to the US under the privacy shield.