Nummer: 172

Update Digital Single Gateway

The Digital Single Gateway facilitates a single window online access to information, administrative procedures, and assistance services that EU citizens and businesses need in another EU country such as birth certificates, car registration, European health card, moving a business from one Member State to another or grant applications and business permits. Combining self-service tools and problem-solving services with a network of national portals, the Digital Single Gateway makes it easier to get an overview over the EU level information or different national rules and procedures. It also sets out requirements of automated exchange of documents between administrations, known as “Once-only” principle, where a citizen, consumers or business only have to provide documentation once.

But as beneficial as the gateway is, fragmented implementation hinders the full potential of the gateway to be accessed by the users, whether they be a citizen, consumer or a business.  

Furthermore, there is potential beyond a successful implementation. Due to the design of the current version of the DSG, the procedures to be made available through the gateway, figures on a closed list. The decision to do so was made to contain only the procedures that already exist in the different Member States, categorized as “high level” life events for a citizen or a business. This is positive for feasibility but gives restraints as new cases or procedures cannot be added without a revision. During the Once-only-project phase, the Commission identified a procedure, exchange of maritime environment, that could function well in the DSG, but as it is not on the list, it is not included.

Therefore, an upgrade and revision of the current regulation could secure that even more procedures could be completed online.

Lastly, language barriers remain a challenge. Access to information is only useful if the information itself is in a language the user masters. Due to the current language requirements some users might not be able to understand the procedures or information that the gateway leads them to. This is because there are no requirements for a specific language or more than one language. The requirement is that users should be able to receive all the relevant explanations in an official language that is broadly understood by the largest possible number of cross border users. Furthermore, there are no requirements for the Member States to translate any content. If the gateway should be more relevant and useable for the citizens, consumers or businesses, looking for information, language is an important factor to consider.

Dato:
13. september 2023
Type af anbefaling:
Tidlig interessevaretagelse i EU
Tema:
Tidlig interessevaretagelse
Ansvarlig ministerium:
Digitaliserings- og Ligestillingsministeriet
Status på anbefaling:
Følges delvist

The affected EU-Regulation

Digital Single Gateway regulation (EU 2018/1724).

 

Affected businesses

All companies doing business within the EU can benefit from the gateway working properly, saving time and finances on easier procedures and faster access to information. Likewise, they are affected on time and fiscal spending when the tool is not fully implemented.
 

Reasoning behind the recommendation

The Digital Single Gateway is an essential tool for the functioning of the digital single market and cross border cooperation. It is the strongest driver for digital integration. But it could work even better if the Member States harmonized their implementation. The tool is weakened if users do not find it useful and if they cannot find the explanations or guidance they are seeking. Fragmented or delayed implementation makes the solution less useable as some information from some Member States is not available as intended. It leaves both citizens, consumers and businesses without the information or service that are necessary for them to complete a certain procedure.
 

In addition to asking for a harmonized implementation from the Member States, the tool can be of even more use, if more requirements in the form of administrative procedures could be met digitally. For instance, it would be an improvement if a revision could target procedures where physical presence is still required, so procedures can be completed without the need to travel or to send documents by mail. In some Member States it is still a requirement to present in person with a passport to prove one’s identity, just as physical mail and printed documentation is still standard for some Member States.  
 

Language barriers remain an issue. It is positive that the gateway can lead you to the destination of your enquiry or task, but if it leads to a portal in a language, you do not master, it is difficult to complete the enquiry or task. 
 

Expected consequences for industry and commerce 

With a functional and further developed Digital Single Gateway, industry will have easier access to relevant information and complete procedures from other countries, thus making it easier for companies to do business and trade across borders.
 

Economic consequences

If the companies spend less time and man hours on administration and bureaucracy, savings is to be expected.
 

Current Danish efforts

The Danish administration is currently implementing the regulation where the last step is to be implemented in at the end of 2023. In addition to this, a national coordinator is participating in the Digital Single Gateway Coordination Group with the Commission (DG GROW) and other Member States’ national experts.

 

 

We suggest a close monitoring of the implementation of the Single Digital Gateway by the Commission and for them to initiate action and close cooperation with one or more Member States where fragmentation in or lack of implementation are noticed.
 

In parallel, we recommend to upgrade the regulation in order to ensure that more procedures and developments in digital eco-systems will be reflected in the regulation. If services that ease cross boarder delivery of services exist, they should be available through the gateway in full.  

A revision of the regulation should also make it mandatory for the Member States to offer digital solutions as e-mail over physical letters or the opportunity to do certain procedures online instead of showing up in person. This would not only ease the procedures to such a degree that the intention with tool can be met, but it would also be in line with the mantra of the digital decade “Digital first”.
 

Also, when it comes to language requirements there is a need for close monitoring of the current requirements and consider possible expansions. The most common spoken second language is English and more mandatory information in English would be a big step forward in making the gateway more usable. Either by Member States producing information in English or translating already existing information.
 

The end goal of the continued work and improvement of the Digital Single Gateway should be for it to truly be a single information point. The tool would be of the highest benefit for companies, if they could receive all answers in one place, instead of having to go to sometimes multiple different webpages, as the gateway right now works as a forwarding-mechanism. 

Regeringen tiltræder delvist Regelforums anbefaling vedrørende Single Digital Gateway-forordningen (SDG). Regeringen tiltræder anbefalingerne om at mindske fragmentering og sprogbarrierer i implementeringen af SDG. På nuværende tidspunkt har regeringen ikke planer om at tiltræde anbefalingen om en revision af SDG-forordningen for at inkludere flere digitale procedurer.

En udvidelse af SDG-forordningens anvendelsesområde kan føre til statsfinansielle konsekvenser. Regeringen er bekymret for, om forventede fordele står i rimeligt forhold til omkostningerne. Der udestår fortsat implementering af to af forordningens centrale forpligtelser, navnlig kravene om adgang til selvbetjeningsløsninger og automatisk udveksling af dokumentation på tværs af medlemsstater (”engangsprincippet”). Disse forpligtelser indebærer komplekse tekniske udfordringer samt en omfattende og omkostningstung implementering. Den automatiske udveksling af dokumentation mellem medlemsstater kræver specifikt et endnu ikke udviklet fælleseuropæiske it-system kaldet det tekniske engangssystem.

Det tekniske engangssystem kan på sigt føre til, at EU-brugere nemmere kan gennemføre selvbetjeningsforløb, hvor dokumentation er påkrævet. Værdien vurderes imidlertid svær at realisere grundet systemets kompleksitet. Systemet vil først være funktionsdygtigt og medføre en vis værdiskabelse, når flere medlemsstater og Kommissionen har udviklet deres dele af det tekniske engangssystem, og der i EU er opnået enighed om standarder for dokumentationsudveksling over de kommende år. 

SDG-forordningen vurderes endvidere at have flere overlap til den europæiske digitale identitetstegnebog, der forventes at skulle etableres på tværs af medlemsstaterne i forlængelse af revideringen af eIDAS-forordningen. Identitetstegnebogen vurderes generelt at have større værdi for både brugere, myndigheder og virksomheder.    

Hvis der opstår behov for specifikke procedurer, der bør være tilgængelige gennem portalen, kan dette tilvejebringes gennem nye EU-retsakter ved at følge den almindelig lovgivningsprocedure, uden at ændre den eksisterende SDG-forordning.

Regeringen påpeger, at ingen EU-lande forventes at opfylde kravene i SDG-forordningen inden december 2023. Derfor mener regeringen ikke, det er hensigtsmæssigt at arbejde på en revision, der tilføjer flere digitale procedurer til en allerede omfattende, omkostningstung og kompleks forordning, hvor merværdien på nuværende tidspunkt er ukendt.