Andrus Ansip, Vice-President for the Digital Single Market, said: "The new European Interoperability Framework gives specific guidance for setting up interoperable digital public services. Its application by European public administrations will ensure seamless services and information flows locally, nationally and across the European Union. It will make it easier for people and businesses to communicate with their administration and those of other Member States, to declare a change of address for example. ”

The new framework offers specific guidance to public administrations across Europe on how to improve governance and ensure that both existing and new legislation do not compromise interoperability of their digital services. The framework includes a set of 47 recommendations that can increase interoperability. The application of the framework by European public administrations will ensure that their services are standardised, automated, streamlined and provided securely in less time and with less effort. It will also ensure that data are more available and of quality that allows better analysis and decision making.

A stronger and more targeted framework

The updated interoperability recommendations take into account different EU policies, such as the revised Directive on the reuse of Public Sector Information, the INSPIRE Directive, and the eIDAS Regulation, as well as new EU initiatives, such as the European Cloud initiative, the EU eGovernment Action Plan 2016-2020, and envisaged ones, such as the Single Digital Gateway.

The new framework includes interoperability principles and models to be implemented by an updated set of recommendations. It puts special emphasis on how these recommendations will apply in practise with the help of concrete existing solutions. New recommendations have a stronger focus on openness and information management, data portability, interoperability governance, and integrated service delivery.

Today's Communication is accompanied by an Interoperability Action Plan which outlines priorities that will support the implementation of the European Interoperability Framework from 2016 to 2020.

The next steps

The European Commission will govern and coordinate the implementation and monitoring of the framework with the support of the ISA² programme. Moreover, Member States are expected to complement the EU's actions, identified in the Interoperability Action Plan, with national actions. The Commission will evaluate the implementation of the revised European Interoperability Framework by the end of 2019.

Background

The revision of the European Interoperability Framework is part of the Digital Single Market strategy, presented by the Commission in May 2015. The public sector, which accounts for over a quarter of total employment and represents approximately a fifth of the EU's GDP through public procurement, plays a key role in the Digital Single Market as a regulator, service provider and employer. The successful implementation of the framework will improve the quality of European public services and will create an environment where public administrations can collaborate digitally. The need to revise the framework that is in place since 2010, was confirmed during intense consultations of Member States' public administrations, citizens, businesses and other interested parties.