COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS EU eGovernment Action Plan 2016-2020 Accelerating the digital transformation of government
Date: 2016-04-19
Institutions: Directorate-General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology, European Commission
Subjects: action programme, administrative formalities, data protection, data transmission, digital technology, electronic government, information technology, information technology applications, single market

EN 

   EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 19.4.2016  COM(2016) 179 final   COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS EU eGovernment Action Plan 2016-2020 Accelerating the digital transformation of government     {SWD(2016) 108 final} {SWD(2016) 109 final}  
 
 
1. 

INTRODUCTION 

eGovernment  supports  administrative  processes,  improves  the  quality  of  the  services  and 
increases  internal  public  sector  efficiency.  Digital  public  services  reduce  administrative 
burden  on  businesses  and  citizens  by  making  their  interactions  with  public  administrations 
faster  and  efficient,  more  convenient  and  transparent,  and  less  costly.  In  addition,  using 
digital  technologies  as  an  integrated  part  of  governments’  modernisation  strategies  can 
unlock  further  economic  and  social  benefits  for  society  as  a  whole1.  The  digital 
transformation of government is a key element to the success of the Single Market. 

The  eGovernment  Action  Plans2  have  been  political 
the 
modernisation  of  public  administrations  across  the  European  Union.  They  have  been 
supporting coordination and collaboration between Member States and the Commission and 
led to joint actions on eGovernment.  

to  advance 

instruments 

Evaluation  results  of  the  past  eGovernment  Action  Plan  2011-201534  recognise  that  the 
Action Plan5 had a positive impact on the development of eGovernment at the European and 
Member  State  level.  It  contributed  to  the  coherence  of  national  eGovernment  strategies  as 
well  as  to  the  exchange  of  best  practices  and  the  interoperability  of  solutions  between 
Member States. In particular, it led to the development of technological enablers that are key 
to facilitate access to and use of public services. However, citizens and businesses are not yet 
getting  the  full  benefit  from  digital  services  that  should  be  available  seamlessly  across  the 
EU.  

By  joining  efforts  at  European  Union  level,  the  availability  and  take-up  of  eGovernment 
services  can  be  increased,  resulting  in  faster,  cheaper,  more  user-oriented  digital  public 
services. Seamless cross-border and digital public services contribute to competitiveness and 
make the EU a more attractive place to invest6 and live in.  

The  Digital  Single  Market  Strategy  for  Europe  (DSM)7  announces  the  launch  of  a  new 
eGovernment Action Plan for 2016-2020 that aims to remove existing digital barriers to the 
Digital  Single  Market  and  to  prevent  further  fragmentation  arising  in  the  context  of  the 
modernisation  of  public  administrations.  This  EU  eGovernment  Action  Plan  aims  to  be  the 
instrument to join up efforts. While Member States pursue their own strategies and activities, 
this Action Plan – based on a shared long-term vision - sets out a number of principles that 
forthcoming  initiatives  should  observe  in  order  to  deliver  the  significant  benefits  that 
eGovernment can bring to businesses, citizens and public administrations themselves. 

1  
2  
3  

4  
5  
6   
7  

Recommendation of the Council on Digital Government Strategies, OECD, 2014 
i2010 eGovernment Action Plan 2006-2010 and eGovernment Action Plan 2011-2015 
https://ec.europa.eu/digital-agenda/en/news/mid-term-evaluation-e-government-action-plan-2011-2015-implementation-smart-
2012-006020 
Staff Working Document for Evaluation accompanying the EU eGovernment Action Plan 2016-2020 Communication 
COM(2010) 743 final 
In line with the Investment Plan for Europe, http://ec.europa.eu/priorities/jobs-growth-and-investment_en 
COM(2015) 192 final 

2 

 
 
                                                            
The  Action  Plan  provides  for  a  dynamic  and  flexible  approach,  to  keep  track  of  the  fast 
changing environment8. Beyond the actions identified in this Action Plan, further actions may 
be  proposed  either  by  the  Commission  or  by  stakeholders,  including  Member  States.  All 
actions  led  by  the  Commission  will  be  prepared  in  line  with  the  Commission's  better 
regulation standards. 

The Action Plan will serve as a catalyst to coordinate public sector modernisation efforts and 
resources in the field of eGovernment. The Action Plan will not have a dedicated budget or 
funding  instrument;  it  will  however  help  to  coordinate  funding  sources  and  accompanying 
measures that are available to Member States through different EU programmes9.  

2. 

VISION AND UNDERLYING PRINCIPLES 

Member  States'  governments  have  long  aspired  to  being  open,  flexible and  collaborative  in 
their  relations  with  citizens  and  businesses,  using  eGovernment  to  increase  their  efficiency 
and effectiveness and constantly improving public services10.  

This Action Plan is guided by the following vision: 

By 2020, public administrations and public institutions in the European Union should be 
open, efficient and inclusive, providing borderless, personalised, user-friendly, end-to-end 
digital public services to all citizens and businesses in the EU. Innovative approaches are 
used to design and deliver better services in line with the needs and demands of citizens 
and  businesses.  Public  administrations  use  the  opportunities  offered  by  the  new  digital 
environment to facilitate their interactions with stakeholders and with each other. 

increasingly  digital, 

Opening the data and services between public administrations within and across borders will 
increase their efficiency and facilitate the free movement of businesses and citizens. Citizens' 
lives  have  become 
to  higher  expectations  of  public 
administration  performance11.  Users  wish  to  understand  how  the  service  works12  and  they 
expect greater transparency. Furthermore, by opening up to and engaging with stakeholders 
in  decision-making13,  public  administrations  will  become  more  trustworthy  and  more 
accountable.  In  addition,  opening  public  sector  data  and  services  to  third  parties,  in  full 
compliance with the legal framework for the protection of personal data and for privacy, can 
contribute to growth and competitiveness. 

leading 

Initiatives to be launched as part of this Action Plan should observe the following underlying 
principles, which are strongly supported by stakeholders14:  

8  

9  

https://ec.europa.eu/digital-agenda/en/news/mid-term-evaluation-e-government-action-plan-2011-2015-implementation-smart-
2012-006020 
Including Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), ISA² programme (Interoperability solutions for European Public Administrations), Horizon 
2020,  European  Structural  and  Investment  Funds  (ESIF),  the  Justice  Programme  and  the  Structural  Reform  Support  Programme 
(SRSP). 

10   Malmö Ministerial Declaration on eGovernment, 2009 
11  
12  
13  
14 

EU eGovernment Benchmark Report 2014 
EU eGovernment Benchmark Report 2015 
Recommendation of the Council on Digital Government Strategies, OECD, 2014 
https://ec.europa.eu/digital-agenda/en/news/contributions-and-preliminary-trends-public-consultation-egovernment-action-plan-
2016-2020  

3 

 
 
                                                            
  Digital by Default: public administrations should deliver services digitally (including 
machine  readable  information)  as  the  preferred  option  (while  still  keeping  other 
channels  open  for  those  who  are  disconnected  by  choice  or  necessity).  In  addition, 
public services should be delivered through a single contact point or a one-stop-shop 
and via different channels. 

  Once only principle: public administrations should ensure that citizens and businesses 
supply  the  same  information  only  once  to  a  public  administration.  Public 
administration  offices  take  action  if  permitted  to  internally  re-use  this  data,  in  due 
respect  of  data  protection  rules,  so  that  no  additional  burden  falls  on  citizens  and 
businesses.  
Inclusiveness  and  accessibility:  public  administrations  should  design  digital  public 
services that are inclusive by default and cater for different needs such as those of the 
elderly and people with disabilities15. 

 

  Openness  &  transparency:  public  administrations  should  share  information  and  data 
between themselves and enable citizens and businesses to access control and correct 
their  own  data;  enable  users  to  monitor  administrative  processes  that  involve  them; 
engage  with  and  open  up  to  stakeholders  (such  as  businesses,  researchers  and  non-
profit organisations) in the design and delivery of services.  

  Cross-border  by  default:  public  administrations  should  make  relevant  digital  public 
services  available  across  borders  and  prevent  further  fragmentation  to  arise,  thereby 
facilitating mobility within the Single Market.  
Interoperability  by  default:  public  services  should  be  designed  to  work  seamlessly 
across  the  Single  Market  and  across  organisational  silos,  relying  on  the  free 
movement of data and digital services in the European Union. 

 

  Trustworthiness  &  Security:  All  initiatives  should  go  beyond  the  mere  compliance 
with the legal framework on personal data protection and privacy, and IT security, by 
integrating those elements in the design phase. These are important pre-conditions for 
increasing trust in and take-up of digital services.  

Administrations,  public  bodies,  businesses  and  users  know  themselves  best  what  they 
need. The choice of systems and technologies, of distributed or centralised designs should 
be  entirely  according  to  their  choice  and  needs  but  need  to  fully  respect  agreed 
interoperability requirements. 

3. 

POLICY PRIORITIES 

The  DSM  Strategy  sets  out  the  strategic  objectives  to  'modernise  public  administration, 
achieve  cross-border  interoperability  and  facilitate  easy  interaction  with  citizens',  aimed  at 
accelerating the digital transformation of public administrations in the Member States and the 
Commission. In view of these policy priorities, this Action Plan sets out concrete actions to 
accelerate the implementation of existing legislation and the related take up of online public 
services.  

15  

A proposal for a directive on web accessibility is currently pending with the co-legislators, COM (2012)721. 

4 

 
 
                                                            
3.1. 

Modernise public administration with ICT, using key digital enablers 

Modern and efficient public administrations need to ensure fast and high-quality services for 
citizens  and  a  business-friendly  environment,  as  recognised  by  the  recent  Annual  Growth 
Surveys16. Public administrations need to transform their back offices, to rethink and redesign 
existing  procedures  and  services,  and  open  their  data  and  services  to  other  administrations, 
and, as far as possible, to businesses and civil society. 

These  efforts  need  to  rely  on  key  digital  enablers.  Digital  public  services  should  build  on 
shared  and  reusable  solutions  and  services  based  on  agreed  standards  and  technical 
specifications  in  order  to  reduce  their  cost  of  development,  their  time  to  deployment  and 
increase  interoperability.  A  common  understanding  of  interoperability  throughout  the 
European  Union  is  guaranteed  through  the  European  Interoperability  Framework17.  Cross-
border investment can greatly benefit from this interoperability. 

Work is on-going to support the transition of Member States' public administrations towards 
full e-procurement, use of contract registers and interoperable e-signatures18. With the focus 
on the European Single Procurement Document, e-Certis and e-Invoicing and a coordinated 
approach  to  development  of  the  national  e-procurement  systems,  the  objective  is  that  by 
2018,  companies  will  be  able  to  bid  for  public  procurement  contracts  anywhere  in  the 
European  Union  electronically  and  by  2019  eInvoicing  will  be  accepted  by  public 
administrations in the EU. 

Further  efforts  by  all  administrations  are  needed  to  accelerate  the  take  up  of  electronic 
identification  and  trust  services  for  electronic  transactions  in  the  internal  market  (eIDAS19 
services).  Further  actions  to  accelerate  the  cross-border  and  cross-sector  use  of  electronic 
identification (eID), including mobile ID, and trust services (in particular eSignature, website 
authentication  and  online  registered  delivery  service)  will  be  pursued  in  digitally  enabled 
businesses  (such  as  banking,  finance,  eCommerce  and  sharing  economy)  and  in  the  public 
sector namely on the European e-Justice Portal. The Commission will also explore the need 
to facilitate the usage of remote identification and secure authentication in the retail financial 
services20. 

The re-use of open services and technical building blocks (such as eID, eSignature, eDelivery 
and  eInvoice)  by  Member  States  is  critical  for  interoperability.  The  availability  of  these 
services is currently guaranteed by funding from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF); it is 
however  necessary  to  ensure  their  availability  and  long-term  sustainability  beyond  this 
funding  programme.  Therefore,  the  Commission  will  present  a  way  forward  for  their 
sustainability beyond 2020. 

16  
17  
18  
19  
20  

Annual Growth Survey 2015 and 2016 
Revised EIF to be published in 2016 
COM(2015) 192 final, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?qid=1447773803386&uri=CELEX:52015DC0192 
Regulation (EU) No 910/2014 
http://ec.europa.eu/finance/consultations/2015/retail-financial-services/index_en.htm 

5 

 
 
 
 
 
                                                            
Actions  
The Commission will 

1.  Support  the  transition  of  Member  States  towards  full  e-procurement 

and use of contract registers.  

2.  Accelerate  the  take-up  of  eIDAS  services,  including  eID  and 

eSignature.  

3.  Ensure  the  long-term  sustainability  of  cross-border  digital  services 

infrastructure. 

Target date 

2019 

2016 

2018 

As  announced  in  the  DSM  strategy,  the  Commission  plans  to  propose  a  revised  European 
Interoperability Framework (EIF) by the end of 2016 and will support its take-up by national 
administrations with the aim to strengthen the interoperability of public services in the EU.  

Further  efforts  are  needed  to  ensure  the  take-up  of  existing  European  and  international 
standards and technical specifications as well as new ones being developed under the Priority 
ICT Standards Plan. The Commission will coordinate with Member States the development 
of a prototype for a European Catalogue of ICT standards for public procurement which will 
support interoperability in the acquisition of digital solutions by encouraging the reference to 
common sets of ICT standards and profiles in Public Procurers' calls for tenders. 

Actions 
The Commission will 

4.  Present a revised version of the European Interoperability Framework 

(EIF) and support its take-up by national administrations.  

5.  Coordinate the  development of a  prototype  for a European Catalogue 

of ICT standards for public procurement. 

Target date 

2016-
2019 

2017 

In view of its own digital transformation and in order to comply with the legal obligations set 
out for EU public administrations, the European Commission will also undertake a number of 
concrete actions.  

When  conducting  its  regulatory  fitness  (REFIT)  exercises  to  review  the  existing  internal 
market acquis and/or drafting new proposals, the Commission will pay particular attention to 
interoperability and on the benefits that the effective usage of digital technologies can bring. 
The  aim  is  to  remove  unnecessarily  complex,  paper-based  or  duplicating  processes  (e.g. 
multitude of contact points, reporting processes, data exchange or systems requirements). 

In  view  of  its  own  digital  transformation,  the  Commission  will  publish  its  data  on  the  EU 
Open  Data  Portal21,  which  will  feed  into  the  European  Open  Data  Portal22,  share  and  reuse 
operational building blocks such as Digital Service Infrastructures (DSIs) where relevant, and 
apply the revised version of the EIF. The Commission will gradually introduce the 'digital by 
default'  principle  when  interacting  online  with  external  stakeholders,  using  eIDAS  services 

21  
22  

http://open-data.europa.eu  
http://data.europa.e/europeandataportal  

6 

 
 
                                                            
(in  2018),  eInvoicing  (in  2018)  and  eProcurement  (in  2019).  In  order  to  reduce  the 
administrative burden, the Commission will also gradually roll out the 'once-only' principle in 
its interactions  with  suppliers  and  grants  participants  and  examine  possibilities  to  introduce 
the 'once-only' principle for other stakeholders. The Commission will assess the implication 
of a possible implementation of the 'no legacy principle' (renew IT systems and technologies 
after  a  certain  amount  of  time,  to  keep  in  line  with  the  ever-changing  environment  and 
development of technology) in public administrations. 

Actions 

6.  The  Commission  will  use  the  common  building  blocks  such  as  CEF 
DSIs  and  follow  the  EIF.  It  will  gradually  introduce  the  'digital  by 
default'  and  'once-only'  principles,  eInvoicing  and  eProcurement  and 
assess the implication  of  a  possible  implementation  of the 'no  legacy' 
principle. 

Target date 

2016-
2019 

Additional  initiatives  could  aim  at  reducing  the  administrative  burden  and  improving  the 
efficiency  and  effectiveness  of  public  administrations,  by  making  digital  public  services 
'needs-based'  and  user-friendly  or  by  re-using  data  and  services  between  public 
administrations (respecting data protection and privacy rules).  

Other  initiatives  could  aim  at  developing  new  common  building  blocks  in  addition  to  the 
existing ones23, supporting their take-up and encouraging the use and sharing of cloud, data 
and computing infrastructures. Initiatives could also promote the usage of big data or Internet 
of  Things  for  instance  for  data-intensive  services  and  evidence-informed  policy-making, 
implementation  and  enforcement  supported  by  appropriate  infrastructure.  A  shared  Cloud 
Infrastructure  to  host  eGovernment  services  could  help  realising  important  savings  by 
economies  of  scale,  improving  their  time  to  market,  as  well  as  opening  up  public 
administrations' data and services. The European Cloud initiative24 will offer an infrastructure 
for  science  but  will  also  widen  it  to  public  administrations  giving  access  to  unprecedented 
data and computing power to deliver better services at all levels (from local to national to EU 
level). 

3.2. 

Enabling cross-border mobility with interoperable digital public services 

The  EU  Single  Market  cannot  function  effectively  without  cross-border  digital  public 
services.  Such  services  facilitate  access  to  markets,  increase  confidence  in  and  stimulate 
competition across the Single Market. Administrations should help businesses operate online 
across  borders  within  the  Single  Market, simplify  access  to  information  under  EU  business 
and company laws and enable businesses to easily start doing business, expand and operate in 
other Member States through end-to-end public e-services.  

23  
24  

such as eID, eSignature, eDelivery, eInvoicing and eTranslation 
European Cloud Initiative – Building a competitive data and knowledge economy in Europe 

7 

 
 
 
                                                            
In order to move towards these policy priorities, a number of concrete actions are included in 
this Action Plan with the aim to  contribute to the creation of business friendly cross-border 
public administrations and help the mobility of citizens. 

Currently  Single  Market-related  information,  advice,  problem-solving  mechanisms,  contact 
points  and  procedures  do  not  operate  as  a  whole  but  are  dispersed,  incomplete,  not 
sufficiently  inter-connected  and  not  consistently  user-friendly  –  both  at  EU  and  national 
level. It is therefore difficult for users to find the right information and assistance required. 
The Commission will  therefore propose the creation of a Single Digital Gateway, based on 
existing  portals,  contact  points  and  networks,  expanding,  improving  and  streamlining  all 
information,  assistance  and  problem  solving  services  needed  to  operate  efficiently  across 
borders,  and  enabling  users  to  complete  the  most  frequently  used  national  procedures  fully 
on-line. 

The Commission will make the European e-Justice Portal a one-stop shop for information on 
European justice and access to judicial procedures in the Member States. For 2016, this will 
include  the  go-live  of  tools  for  direct  communications  between  citizens  and  courts  in  other 
Member States (e-CODEX), as well as the introduction of the European Case Law Identifier 
(ECLI) search engine. Further developments will follow the Multiannual European e-Justice 
Action Plan 2014-2018.  

The Commission will continue its ongoing work together with the Member States on setting 
up the mandatory interconnection of all Member States' business registers25, in order to allow 
access  via  the  European  e-Justice  portal  to  certain  information  on  companies  registered  in 
Member States and to ensure that all EU business registers concerned can communicate with 
each other electronically in a safe and secure way. This will enhance confidence in the Single 
Market  through  transparency  and  up-to-date  information  on  companies  and  reduce  burdens 
on companies. 

The  Commission  will  also  further  develop  an  electronic  interconnection  of  insolvency 
registers  to  enhance  transparency  and  legal  certainty  in  the  internal  market26.  Regulation 
2015/848 obliges Member States to set up their own domestic insolvency electronic registers 
by  2018,  while  the  establishment  of  the  interconnection  of  insolvency  registers  is  set  for 
2019. This will become available on the European e-Justice Portal. 

Improving  the  use  of  digital  tools  when  complying  with  company-law  related requirements 
throughout  different  phases  of  a  company's  lifecycle  would  achieve  simpler  and  less 
burdensome  solutions  for  companies.  Beyond  the  Single  Member  Company  proposal,  the 
Commission  will  consider  within  an  initiative  as  outlined  in  the  Single  Market  Strategy 
further  ways27  to  facilitate  the  use  of  digital  solutions  throughout  a  company's  lifecycle,  in 

25  

26  
27  

Directive 2012/17/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 June 2012 amending Council Directive 89/666/EEC and 
Directives 2005/56/EC and 2009/101/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards the interconnection of central, 
commercial and companies registers (OJ L 156, 16.6.2012, p. 1) 
COM(2015) 192 final, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?qid=1447773803386&uri=CELEX:52015DC0192 
as required by Regulation (EU) 2015/848 on insolvency proceedings (recast) 
As  defined  in  the  Commission  Communication  "Upgrading  the  Single  Market:  more  opportunities  for  people  and  business" 
(COM(2015) 550, p. 5. 

8 

 
 
                                                            
particular  in  relation  to  the  online  registration  procedures  and  to  the  electronic  filing  of 
company documents and information28 in business registers, also in a cross-border context. 

The  Commission  will  propose  legislation  to  extend  the  Single  Electronic  Mechanism  for 
registration  and  payment  of  VAT  to  cross-border  business  to  consumers  online  sales  of 
physical  goods,  in  order  to  reduce  the  administrative  burden,  one  of  the  main  barriers 
businesses face operating cross-border. 

As  announced  in  the  DSM,  a  large  scale  pilot  project  on  implementing  the  once-only 
principle across borders in the business-to-government area will be launched in 2016 with the 
participation of Member States.  

In  addition,  the  Commission  will  establish  a  European  single  window  addressing  also  the 
once-only  principle  for  reporting  purposes  in  maritime  transport.  In  a  wider  context,  the 
Commission  is  working  on  the  digitalisation  of  transport  documents  for  all  modes  and  the 
promotion of their acceptance by public authorities.  

Actions 
The Commission will 

7.  Submit a proposal for a Single Digital Gateway. 

8.  Make the European e-Justice Portal a one-stop shop for information on 

European justice issues. 

9.  Set  up  in  cooperation  with  the  Member  States,  the  mandatory 

interconnection of all Member States' business registers. 

10. Further develop the electronic interconnection of insolvency registers. 

11. Present an initiative to facilitate the use of digital solutions throughout 

a company's lifecycle. 

12. Present  a  legislative  proposal  to  extend  the  Single  Electronic 

Mechanism for registration and payment of VAT. 

13. Launch a pilot on the Once Only Principle for business. 

14. Establish a single window for reporting purposes in maritime transport 

and digitalise transport e-documents. 

Target 
date 

2017 

2016 

2017 

2019 

2017 

2016 

2016 

2018 

In support of the cross-border mobility of citizens, the Commission will set up the Electronic 
Exchange  of  Social  Security  Information  (EESSI),  allowing  the  interconnection  between 
administrations  in  charge  of  social  security  for  electronic  data  exchanges  across  32 
countries29.  The  purpose  of  EESSI  is  to  strengthen  the  protection  of  citizens'  rights  by 
enabling  the  electronic  exchange  of  personal  social  security  information  in  the  EU  among 
Member States' competent administrations.  

28  
29  

See also COM(2015) 550, p. 5. 
28  European  Union  (EU)  Member  States  (MS),  Switzerland  and  3  European  Economic  Area  (EEA)  countries:  Norway,  Iceland, 
Lichtenstein 

9 

 
 
                                                            
The  Commission  will  further  develop  the  EURES  European  Job  Mobility  portal,  offering 
more  services  for  job  seekers  and  employers,  increasing  the  integration  between  Public 
Employment Services systems and the portal by also exchanging Jobseeker Profiles (CV's)30. 
This will facilitate the mobility of job seekers in the EU. 

The  Commission  will  support  Member  States  in  the  development  of  eHealth  services  that 
also enable cross-border exchange of e-prescriptions, based on the e-prescription guidelines 
adopted  by  the  eHealth  Network31  and  telemedicine  and  tele-monitoring  solutions,  in 
particular  for  the  successful  provision  of  treatment  by  European  Reference  Networks32.  In 
addition, it will support the development of a report and guidelines by the eHealth Network 
on citizens' electronic access to their health data. 

Actions 
The Commission will 

15. Complete  the  setup  of  the  Electronic  Exchange  of  Social  Security 

Information. 

16. Further develop the EURES European Job Mobility portal. 

17. Support  Member  States  in  the  development  of  cross-border  eHealth 

services. 

Target 
date 

2019 

2017 

2016- 
2018 

Future initiatives proposed under this  priority could aim at providing seamless cross-border 
services provided to citizens for their 'life events' (such as changing jobs, moving or getting 
married) and businesses, making it easier for them to start doing business, expand and operate 
in other Member States. Additional initiatives under this priority could also aim at improving 
the  quality  of  existing  eGovernment  services  offered  to  citizens  and  businesses  of  other 
Member States.  

3.3. 

Facilitating  digital  interaction  between  administrations  and  citizens/businesses  for 
high-quality public services  

The  new  digital  environment  offers  opportunities  to  facilitate  the  interaction  of  citizens, 
business  and  non-governmental  organisations  with  public  administrations.  High  quality 
public services are linked with competitiveness and have an influence on where investments 
are being made. Recent experiences show that there is a promising potential to deliver such 
high  quality  public  services,  by  stepping  up  the  involvement  of  businesses  and  citizens  as 
well as researchers in their design and delivery, and by ensuring feedback for improvement 
where necessary. This leads to further reducing red tape, easing use, lowering delivery costs.  

Furthermore,  by  opening  up  public  sector  data  and  services  and  facilitating  their  re-use  by 
third  parties  in  due  respect  of  the 
'Trustworthiness  &  Security'  principle,  public 
administrations can foster new opportunities for knowledge, growth and jobs. When opening 

30  

The  purpose  of  EURES  is  to  provide  information,  advice  and  recruitment/placement  (job-matching)  services  for  the  benefit  of 
workers and employers as well as any citizen wishing to benefit from the principle of the free movement of persons. 

31   Guidelines on ePrescriptions Dataset for electronic exchange under cross-border Directive 2011/24/EU  
32  

According to Article 12 of Directive 2011/24/EU on the application of patients' rights in cross-border care 

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their  data,  public  administrations  become  more  transparent,  increasing  their  accountability 
while getting closer to their citizens. 

In view of these policy priorities, the Commission will provide high quality, accessible online 
services  to  citizens  and  businesses  in  the  EU  by  transforming  websites  managed  by  the 
Commission  into  a  thematic,  user-centred  web  presence.  This  will  significantly  change  the 
way the Commission interacts with citizens online by providing a relevant, coherent and cost-
effective web presence. This will increase transparency as well as enabling the engagement 
and participation of citizens and businesses in EU programmes and policy making. 

In order to facilitate interaction of citizens with public administration, the Commission will 
assess  the  possibility  of  applying  the  once-only  principle  for  citizens  in  a  cross-border 
context, in due respect of the legal framework on personal data protection and privacy. 

As part of the European Cloud Initiative33, the Commission will create a platform for public 
authorities to open their data and services, creating a "Government as a Service (GaaS)" base 
for the EU. 

There  is  a  growing  demand  from  business  and  citizens  to  have  access  to  high  quality, 
interoperable and re-usable data to provide new services, in particular the area of spatial data. 
The  use  of  spatial  data  for  urban,  land-use,  traffic  planning  and  for  scientific  purposes  can 
unleash new innovations that respond to societal needs such as reducing the negative impact 
on  the  environment.  In  this  regard,  the  Commission  will  promote  the  development  of  end-
user applications, including specific EU-level applications, so as to harvest from citizens and 
business  more  efficiently  the  data  provided  through  Spatial  Data  (INSPIRE)  for  EU-level 
policy  making  and  implementation,  in  particular  in  relation  to  reporting  and  compliance 
promotion34. This will improve the evidence based policy making and support eGovernment 
processes  where  high  quality  spatial  data  (e.g.  cadastres,  maps,  addresses,  buildings,  parks, 
protected sites, natural risk zones, etc.) is needed. 

Actions 
The Commission will 

18. Assess  the  possibility  of  applying  the  once-only  principle  for 

citizens in a cross-border context. 

19. Accelerate  the  deployment  and  take-up  of  the  INSPIRE  Directive 

data infrastructure. 

20. Transform  its  websites  to  support  increasing  engagement  and 
participation  of  citizens  and  businesses  in  EU  programmes  and 
policy making. 

Target date 

2019 

2016-
2020 

2018 

33  
34  

European Cloud Initiative – Building a competitive data and knowledge economy in Europe 
Directive  2007/2/EC  OF  THE  EUROPEAN  PARLIAMENT  AND  OF  THE  COUNCIL  of  14  March  2007  establishing  an  Infrastructure  for 
Spatial Information in the European Community, OJ L 108, 25.4.2007, p. 1. (The report will be made available soon at the following 
web page: http://inspire.ec.europa.eu/) 

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Future  initiatives  that  could  be  proposed  under  this  priority  should  contribute  to  engaging 
citizens, businesses and civil society in the collaborative design, production and delivery of 
public services and to facilitate interaction between public administrations and businesses and 
citizens. Other new initiatives could include the harvesting of data from any source and the 
re-use of public sector data and services for the creation of new, innovative services by other 
actors  (whether  public  or  private).  In  addition,  initiatives  may  focus  on  increasing  the 
transparency of public administrations, as engagement with and participation of stakeholders 
is also expected to increase accountability and trust and reduce opportunities for corruption. 

4. 

DELIVERING THE ACTION PLAN 

This Action Plan includes actions to be launched in 2016 and 2017. Further actions may be 
needed  to  achieve  the  objectives  set  out  within  each  of  the  above  policy  priorities,  and  in 
order to adapt to the rapidly changing technological environment.  

New actions may be proposed by the Commission in order to implement EU legislation or to 
initiate  joint  action.  Stakeholders  (including  a  group  of  Member  States)  may  also  propose 
actions for implementation under the eGovernment Action Plan, in particular for different life 
events through an interactive digital engagement platform.  

The  Commission  will  also  set  up  and  chair  an  "eGovernment  Action  Plan  Steering  Board" 
composed  of  Member  States'  representatives  responsible  for  their  national  eGovernment 
strategies.  The  Steering  board  will  be  in  charge  of  governing  the  Action  Plan  (but  not  the 
individual  actions  in  the  Action  Plan),  in  particular  to  assess  and  select  newly  identified 
actions  during  the  entire  duration  of  the  Action  Plan  and  to  coordinate  the  effective 
implementation and monitoring of the Action Plan measures. If a proposed action results in a 
Commission initiative, it will be subject to its Better Regulation requirements35. 

Delivering on the measures proposed in this eGovernment Action Plan will be possible only 
through a joint commitment and joint ownership between the Commission and the Member 
States, at all levels of administration. 

35   

In line with Commission’s Better Regulation Guidelines, SWD(2015) 111 

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