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Document 02018R1724-20230924
Regulation (EU) 2018/1724 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 2 October 2018 establishing a single digital gateway to provide access to information, to procedures and to assistance and problem-solving services and amending Regulation (EU) No 1024/2012 (Text with EEA relevance)Text with EEA relevance
Consolidated text: Regulation (EU) 2018/1724 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 2 October 2018 establishing a single digital gateway to provide access to information, to procedures and to assistance and problem-solving services and amending Regulation (EU) No 1024/2012 (Text with EEA relevance)Text with EEA relevance
Regulation (EU) 2018/1724 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 2 October 2018 establishing a single digital gateway to provide access to information, to procedures and to assistance and problem-solving services and amending Regulation (EU) No 1024/2012 (Text with EEA relevance)Text with EEA relevance
02018R1724 — EN — 24.09.2023 — 001.001
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REGULATION (EU) 2018/1724 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 2 October 2018 establishing a single digital gateway to provide access to information, to procedures and to assistance and problem-solving services and amending Regulation (EU) No 1024/2012 (OJ L 295 21.11.2018, p. 1) |
Amended by:
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REGULATION (EU) 2022/868 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 30 May 2022 |
L 152 |
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3.6.2022 |
REGULATION (EU) 2018/1724 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL
of 2 October 2018
establishing a single digital gateway to provide access to information, to procedures and to assistance and problem-solving services and amending Regulation (EU) No 1024/2012
(Text with EEA relevance)
CHAPTER I
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 1
Subject matter
This Regulation lays down rules for:
the establishment and operation of a single digital gateway to provide citizens and businesses with easy access to high quality information, to efficient procedures and to effective assistance and problem-solving services with regard to Union and national rules applicable to citizens and businesses exercising or intending to exercise their rights derived from Union law in the field of the internal market, within the meaning of Article 26(2) TFEU;
the use of procedures by cross-border users and the implementation of the ‘once-only’ principle in connection with the procedures listed in Annex II to this Regulation and the procedures provided for in Directives 2005/36/EC, 2006/123/EC, 2014/24/EU and 2014/25/EU;
the reporting on obstacles in the internal market based on the collection of user feedback and statistics from the services covered by the gateway.
Article 2
Establishment of the single digital gateway
The gateway shall give access to:
information on rights, obligations and rules laid down in Union and national law that are applicable to users exercising or intending to exercise their rights derived from Union law in the field of the internal market in the areas listed in Annex I;
information on online and offline procedures and links to online procedures, including procedures covered by Annex II, established at Union or national level in order to enable users to exercise the rights and to comply with the obligations and rules in the field of the internal market in the areas listed in Annex I;
information on, and links to, the assistance and problem-solving services listed in Annex III or referred to in Article 7 which citizens and businesses can refer to if they have questions or problems related to the rights, obligations, rules or procedures referred to in points (a) and (b) of this paragraph.
Article 3
Definitions
For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions apply:
‘user’ means either a citizen of the Union, a natural person residing in a Member State or a legal person having its registered office in a Member State, and who accesses the information, the procedures, or the assistance or problem-solving services, referred to in Article 2(2), through the gateway;
‘cross-border user’ means a user in a situation which is not confined in all respects within a single Member State;
‘procedure’ means a sequence of actions that must be taken by users to satisfy the requirements, or to obtain from a competent authority a decision, in order to be able to exercise their rights as referred to in point (a) of Article 2(2);
‘competent authority’ means any Member State authority or body established at national, regional or local level with specific responsibilities relating to the information, procedures, assistance and problem-solving services covered by this Regulation;
‘evidence’ means any document or data, including text or sound, visual or audiovisual recording, irrespective of the medium used, required by a competent authority to prove facts or compliance with procedural requirements referred to in point (b) of Article 2(2).
CHAPTER II
GATEWAY SERVICES
Article 4
Access to information
Member States shall ensure that users have easy, online access on their national webpages to the following:
information about those rights, obligations and rules referred to in point (a) of Article 2(2) that are derived from national law;
information about those procedures referred to in point (b) of Article 2(2) that are established at national level;
information about those assistance and problem-solving services referred to in point (c) of Article 2(2) that are provided at national level.
The Commission shall ensure that the Your Europe portal provides users with easy, online access to the following:
information about those rights, obligations and rules referred to in point (a) of Article 2(2) that are derived from Union law;
information about those procedures referred to in point (b) of Article 2(2) that are established at Union level;
information about those assistance and problem-solving services referred to in point (c) of Article 2(2) that are provided at Union level.
Article 5
Access to information not included in Annex I
Article 6
Procedures to be offered fully online
The procedures referred to in paragraph 1 shall be considered to be fully online where:
the identification of users, the provision of information and supporting evidence, signature and final submission can all be carried out electronically at a distance, through a service channel which enables users to fulfil the requirements related to the procedure in a user-friendly and structured way;
users are provided with an automatic acknowledgement of receipt, unless the output of the procedure is delivered immediately;
the output of the procedure is delivered electronically, or where necessary to comply with applicable Union or national law, delivered by physical means; and
users are provided with an electronic notification of completion of the procedure.
Article 7
Access to assistance and problem-solving services
Where necessary to meet the needs of the users, the national coordinator may propose to the Commission that links to assistance or problem-solving services provided by private or semi-private entities are included in the gateway, where those services meet the following conditions:
they offer information or assistance within the areas, and for the purposes, covered by this Regulation and are complementary to services already included in the gateway;
they are offered free of charge or at a price which is affordable for micro-enterprises, non-profit organisations and citizens; and
they comply with the requirements laid down in Articles 8, 11 and 16.
Where the national coordinator has proposed the inclusion of a link in accordance with paragraph 3 of this Article, and provides such link in accordance with Article 19(3), the Commission shall assess whether the conditions in paragraph 3 of this Article are met by the service to be included through the link, and if so, shall activate the link.
Where the Commission finds that the conditions in paragraph 3 are not met by the service to be included, it shall inform the national coordinator of the reasons for not activating the link.
Article 8
Quality requirements related to web accessibility
The Commission shall make those of its websites and webpages through which it grants access to the information referred to in Article 4(2) and to the assistance and problem-solving services referred to in Article 7 more accessible by making them perceivable, operable, understandable and robust.
CHAPTER III
QUALITY REQUIREMENTS
SECTION 1
Quality requirements related to information on rights, obligations and rules, on procedures and on assistance and problem-solving services
Article 9
Quality of information on rights, obligations and rules
Where Member States and the Commission are responsible in accordance with Article 4 for ensuring access to information referred to in point (a) of Article 2(2), they shall make sure that such information complies with the following requirements:
it is user-friendly, enabling users to easily find and understand the information and to easily identify which parts of the information are relevant to their particular situation;
it is accurate and sufficiently comprehensive to cover information that users need to know in order to exercise their rights in full compliance with applicable rules and obligations;
it includes references, links to legal acts, technical specifications and guidelines, where relevant;
it includes the name of the competent authority or entity responsible for the content of the information;
it includes the contact details of any relevant assistance or problem-solving services, such as a phone number, an email address, an online enquiry form or any other commonly used means of electronic communication that is most suitable for the type of service offered and for the target audience of that service;
it includes the date of the last update of the information, if any, or, where the information has not been updated, the date of publication of the information;
it is well-structured and presented, so that users can quickly find the information they need;
it is kept up-to-date; and
it is written in clear and plain language adapted to the needs of the target users.
Article 10
Quality of information on procedures
The Member States and the Commission shall, for the purposes of complying with Article 4, ensure that, before users have to identify themselves prior to launching the procedure, they have access to a sufficiently comprehensive, clear and user-friendly explanation of the following elements, where applicable, of the procedures referred to in point (b) of Article 2(2):
the relevant steps of the procedure to be taken by the user, including any exception, under Article 6(3), to the obligation of Member States to offer the procedure fully online;
the name of the competent authority responsible for the procedure, including its contact details;
the accepted means of authentication, identification and signature for the procedure;
the type and format of evidence to be submitted;
the means of redress or appeal which are generally available in the event of disputes with the competent authorities;
the applicable fees and the online methods of payment;
any deadlines to be respected by the user or by the competent authority and where no deadlines exist, the average, estimated or indicative time that the competent authority needs to complete the procedure;
any rules concerning a lack of reply from the competent authority and the legal consequences thereof for the users, including tacit approval or administrative silence arrangements;
any additional languages in which the procedure can be carried out.
Article 11
Quality of information on assistance and problem-solving services
The Member States and the Commission shall, for the purposes of complying with Article 4, ensure that, before submitting a request for a service as referred to in point (c) of Article 2(2), users have access to a clear and user-friendly explanation of the following:
the type, purpose and expected results of the service offered;
the contact details of the entities responsible for the service such as a phone number, an email address, an online enquiry form or any other commonly used means of electronic communication that is most suitable for the type of service offered and for the target audience of that service;
where relevant, the applicable fees and the online methods of payment;
any applicable deadlines to be respected and where none exist, an average, or estimated time required to deliver the service;
any additional languages in which the request can be submitted and which can be used in subsequent contacts.
Article 12
Translation of information
SECTION 2
Requirements related to online procedures
Article 13
Cross-border access to online procedures
Member States shall ensure that, for the procedures referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article, at least the following requirements are met:
users are able to access the instructions for completing the procedure in an official language of the Union that is broadly understood by the largest possible number of cross-border users, in accordance with Article 12;
cross-border users are able to submit the required information, including where the structure of such information differs from similar information in the Member State concerned;
cross-border users are able to identify and authenticate themselves, sign or seal documents electronically, as provided for in Regulation (EU) No 910/2014, in all cases where this is also possible for non-crossborder users;
cross-border users are able to provide evidence of compliance with applicable requirements and to receive the outcome of the procedures in electronic format in all cases where this is also possible for non-crossborder users;
where the completion of a procedure requires a payment, users are able to pay any fees online through widely available cross-border payment services, without discrimination based on the place of establishment of the payment service provider, the place of issue of the payment instrument or the location of the payment account within the Union.
Article 14
Technical system for the cross-border automated exchange of evidence and application of the ‘once-only’ principle
The technical system shall, in particular:
enable the processing of requests for evidence at the explicit request of the user;
enable the processing of requests for evidence to be accessed or exchanged;
allow the transmission of evidence between competent authorities;
allow the processing of the evidence by the requesting competent authority;
ensure the confidentiality and integrity of the evidence;
enable the possibility for the user to preview the evidence to be used by the requesting competent authority and to choose whether or not to proceed with the exchange of evidence;
ensure an adequate level of interoperability with other relevant systems;
ensure a high level of security for the transmission and processing of evidence;
not process evidence beyond what is technically necessary for the exchange of evidence, and then only for the duration necessary for that purpose.
Article 15
Verification of evidence between Member States
Where the technical system, or other systems for the exchange or verification of evidence between Member States are not available or are not applicable, or where the user does not request the use of the technical system, competent authorities shall cooperate through the Internal Market Information System (IMI) where this is necessary in order to verify the authenticity of evidence that was submitted to one of them in an electronic format by the user for the purpose of an online procedure.
SECTION 3
Quality requirements related to assistance and problem-solving services
Article 16
Quality requirements related to assistance and problem-solving services
The competent authorities and the Commission shall, within their respective competences, ensure that the assistance and problem-solving services listed in Annex III and those that have been included in the gateway in accordance with Article 7(2), (3) and (4) comply with the following quality requirements:
they are provided within a reasonable timeframe taking into account the complexity of the request;
when deadlines are extended, users are informed in advance of the reasons thereof and of the new deadline given;
where the provision of a service requires a payment, users are able to pay any fees online through widely available cross-border payment services without discrimination based on the place of establishment of the payment service provider, the place of issue of the payment instrument or the location of the payment account within the Union.
SECTION 4
Quality monitoring
Article 17
Quality monitoring
In the event of a deterioration in the quality of the information, of the procedures and of the assistance or problem-solving services referred to in paragraph 1 provided by the competent authorities, the Commission shall, taking into account the seriousness and persistence of the deterioration, take one or more of the following measures:
inform the relevant national coordinator and ask for remedial action;
submit for discussion in the gateway coordination group recommended actions to improve compliance with the quality requirements;
send a letter with recommendations to the Member State concerned;
temporarily disconnect the information, the procedure, or the assistance or problem-solving service from the gateway.
CHAPTER IV
TECHNICAL SOLUTIONS
Article 18
Common user interface
The Commission shall ensure that the common user interface complies with the following quality requirements:
it is easy to use;
it is accessible online through various electronic devices;
it is developed and optimised for different web browsers;
it meets the following web accessibility requirements: perceivability, operability, understandability and robustness.
Article 19
Repository for links
Article 20
Common assistance service finder
Article 21
Responsibilities for the ICT applications supporting the gateway
The Commission shall be responsible for the development, availability, monitoring, updating, maintenance, security and hosting of the following ICT applications and webpages:
the Your Europe portal, referred to in Article 2(1);
the common user interface, referred to in Article 18(1), including the search engine or any other ICT tool that enables searchability of web information and services;
the repository for links, referred to in Article 19(1);
the common assistance service finder, referred to in Article 20(1);
the user feedback tools, referred to in Article 25(1) and point (a) of Article 26(1).
The Commission shall work in close cooperation with the Member States to develop the ICT applications.
CHAPTER V
PROMOTION
Article 22
Name, logo and quality label
The name by which the gateway is to be known and promoted to the general public shall be ‘Your Europe’.
The logo by which the gateway is to be known and promoted to the general public shall be decided by the Commission in close cooperation with the gateway coordination group by 12 June 2019 at the latest.
The logo of the gateway and a link to the gateway shall be made visible and available on the relevant Union-level and national-level websites that are connected to the gateway.
Article 23
Promotion
CHAPTER VI
COLLECTION OF USER FEEDBACK AND STATISTICS
Article 24
User statistics
The statistics collected in accordance with paragraphs 1 and 2 in relation to the information, procedures and assistance and problem-solving services to which the gateway links shall include the following data categories:
data related to the number, origin and type of users of the gateway;
data related to the user preferences and user journeys;
data related to the usability, findability and quality of the information, procedures and assistance and problem-solving services.
Those data shall be made available to the public in an open and commonly used, machine-readable format.
Article 25
User feedback on the services of the gateway
Article 26
Reporting on the functioning of the internal market
The Commission shall:
provide users of the gateway with a user-friendly tool to signal and give feedback anonymously on any obstacles encountered by them in exercising their internal market rights;
collect aggregated information from the assistance and problem-solving services that form part of the gateway about the subject matter of requests and responses.
Article 27
Online summary overviews
The Commission shall publish in an anonymised form online summary overviews of the problems emerging from the information collected in accordance with Article 26(1), the main user statistics referred to in Article 24, and the main user feedback referred to in Article 25.
CHAPTER VII
GOVERNANCE OF THE GATEWAY
Article 28
National coordinators
Each Member State shall appoint a national coordinator. In addition to their obligations in accordance with Articles 7, 17, 19, 20, 23 and 25, the national coordinators shall:
act as a contact point for their respective administrations for all matters relating to the gateway;
promote the uniform application of Articles 9 to 16 by their respective competent authorities;
ensure that the recommendations referred to in point (c) of Article 17(2) are properly implemented.
Article 29
Coordination group
A coordination group is hereby established (‘the gateway coordination group’). It shall be composed of one national coordinator from each Member State and shall be chaired by a representative of the Commission. It shall adopt its rules of procedure. The Commission shall provide the secretariat.
Article 30
Tasks of the gateway coordination group
The gateway coordination group shall support the implementation of this Regulation. In particular it shall:
facilitate the exchange and regular updating of best practices;
encourage the uptake of fully online procedures beyond those included in Annex II to this Regulation, and of online means of authentication, identification and signatures, in particular those provided for in Regulation (EU) No 910/2014;
discuss improvements to the user-friendly presentation of information within the areas listed in Annex I, in particular on the basis of the data collected in accordance with Articles 24 and 25;
assist the Commission in developing the common ICT solutions supporting the gateway;
discuss the draft annual work programme;
assist the Commission in monitoring the execution of the annual work programme;
discuss additional information provided in accordance with Article 5 with a view to encouraging other Member States to provide similar information, where relevant to the users;
assist the Commission in monitoring compliance with the requirements set out in Articles 8 to 16, in accordance with Article 17;
inform about the implementation of Article 6(1);
discuss and recommend actions to the competent authorities and the Commission with a view to avoiding or eliminating unnecessary duplication of the services available through the gateway;
provide opinions on procedures or measures to address efficiently any problems with the quality of the services raised by users or suggestions for its improvement;
discuss the application of the principles of security by design and privacy by design in the context of this Regulation;
discuss issues related to the collection of the user feedback and statistics referred to in Articles 24 and 25, so that the services offered at Union and national level are continuously improved;
discuss issues related to the quality requirements of the services offered through the gateway;
exchange best practices and assist the Commission in the organisation, structuring and presentation of services referred to in Article 2(2), to enable the proper functioning of the common user interface;
facilitate the development and implementation of the coordinated promotion;
cooperate with the governance bodies or networks of information services, and of assistance or problem-solving services;
provide guidance on the additional official language, or languages, of the Union to be used by competent authorities in accordance with Articles 9(2), 10(4) and 11(2), and point (a) of Article 13(2).
Article 31
Annual work programme
The Commission shall adopt the annual work programme which shall specify, in particular:
actions to improve the presentation of specific information within the areas listed in Annex I and actions to facilitate the timely implementation, by competent authorities at all levels, including municipal level, of the requirement to provide information;
actions to facilitate compliance with Articles 6 and 13;
actions required to ensure the consistent compliance with the requirements set out in Articles 9 to 12;
activities related to the promotion of the gateway in accordance with Article 23.
CHAPTER VIII
FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 32
Costs
The general budget of the European Union shall cover the costs of:
development and maintenance of the ICT tools supporting the implementation of this Regulation at Union level;
promotion of the gateway at Union level;
translation of information, explanations and instructions in accordance with Article 12 within a maximum annual volume per Member State, without prejudice to possible reallocation where this is necessary in order to enable full use of the available budget.
Article 33
Protection of personal data
The processing of personal data by competent authorities within the framework of this Regulation shall comply with Regulation (EU) 2016/679. Processing of personal data by the Commission within the framework of this Regulation shall comply with Regulation (EU) 2018/1725.
Article 34
Cooperation with other information and assistance networks
Article 35
Internal Market Information System
Article 36
Reporting and review
By 12 December 2022 and once every two years thereafter, the Commission shall review the application of this Regulation and submit to the European Parliament and to the Council an assessment report on the functioning of the gateway and on the functioning of the internal market on the basis of the statistics and feedback collected in accordance with Articles 24, 25 and 26. The review shall, in particular, evaluate the scope of Article 14, taking into account technological, market and legal developments concerning the exchange of evidence between competent authorities.
Article 37
Committee procedure
Article 38
Amendment to Regulation (EU) No 1024/2012
Regulation (EU) No 1024/2012 is amended as follows:
Article 1 is replaced by the following:
‘Article 1
Subject matter
This Regulation lays down rules for the use of an Internal Market Information System (“IMI”) for administrative cooperation among the IMI actors, including the processing of personal data.’;
in Article 3, paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:
IMI shall be used for exchanges of information, including of personal data, among the IMI actors and for the processing of that information for the purposes of either of the following:
administrative cooperation required in accordance with the acts listed in the Annex;
administrative cooperation subject to a pilot project carried out in accordance with Article 4.’;
in Article 5, the second paragraph is amended as follows:
point (a) is replaced by the following:
“IMI” means the electronic tool provided by the Commission to facilitate administrative cooperation among the IMI actors;’;
point (b) is replaced by the following:
“administrative cooperation” means the collaboration between IMI actors by exchanging and processing information for the purpose of better application of Union law;’;
point (g) is replaced by the following:
“IMI actors” means the competent authorities, the IMI coordinators, the Commission and the Union bodies, offices and agencies;’;
in Article 8(1), the following point is added:
ensuring coordination with Union bodies, offices and agencies and granting them access to IMI.’;
in Article 9, paragraph 4 is replaced by the following:
Article 21 is amended as follows:
paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:
paragraph 3 is replaced by the following:
paragraph 4 is deleted;
in Article 29, paragraph 1 is deleted;
in the Annex, the following points are added:
‘11. Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation) ( *2 ): Article 56, Articles 60 to 66 and Article 70(1).
12. Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 2 October 2018 establishing a single digital gateway to provide access to information, to procedures and to assistance and problem-solving services and amending Regulation (EU) No 1024/2012 ( *3 ): Articles 6(4), 15 and 19.
Article 39
Entry into force
This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
Article 2, Article 4, Articles 7 to 12, Article 16, Article 17, Article 18(1) to (4), Article 19, Article 20, Article 24(1), (2) and (3), Article 25(1) to (4), Article 26 and Article 27 shall apply from 12 December 2020.
Article 6, Article 13, Article 14(1) to (8) and (10) and Article 15 shall apply from 12 December 2023.
Notwithstanding the date of application of Articles 2, 9, 10 and 11, municipal authorities shall make the information, explanations and instructions referred to in those Articles available by 12 December 2022 at the latest.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.
ANNEX I
List of areas of information relevant for citizens and business exercising their internal market rights referred to in point (a) of Article 2(2)
Areas of information areas related to citizens:
Area |
INFORMATION REGARDING RIGHTS, OBLIGATIONS AND RULES ARISING FROM UNION AND NATIONAL LAW |
A. Travel within the Union |
1. documents required of Union citizens, their family members who are not Union citizens, minors travelling alone and non-Union citizens when travelling across borders within the Union (ID card, visa, passport) 2. rights and obligations of travellers by plane, train, ship, bus in and from the Union, and of those who buy travel packages or linked travel arrangements 3. assistance in case of reduced mobility when travelling in and from the Union 4. transport of animals, plants, alcohol, tobacco, cigarettes and other goods when travelling in the Union 5. voice calling and sending and receiving electronic messages and electronic data within the Union |
B. Work and retirement within the Union |
1. seeking employment in another Member State 2. taking up employment in another Member State 3. recognition of qualifications with a view to employment in another Member State 4. taxation in another Member State 5. rules on liability and mandatory insurance linked to residence or employment in another Member State 6. terms and conditions of employment, including for posted workers, as stipulated by law or statutory instrument (including information on working hours, paid leave, holiday entitlements, rights and obligations regarding overtime work, health checks, termination of contracts, dismissal and redundancies) 7. equal treatment (rules prohibiting discrimination in the workplace, rules on equal pay for men and women and on equal pay for employees on fixed-term or permanent employment contracts) 8. health and safety obligations in relation to different types of activity 9. social security rights and obligations in the Union including those related to getting pensions |
C. Vehicles in the Union |
1. taking a motor vehicle temporarily or permanently to another Member State 2. acquiring and renewing a driving licence 3. taking out mandatory motor vehicle insurance 4. buying and selling a motor vehicle in another Member State 5. national traffic rules and requirements for drivers, including general rules for the use of the national road infrastructure: time-based charges (vignette), distance-based charges (toll), emission stickers |
D. Residence in another Member State |
1. moving temporarily or permanently to another Member State 2. purchasing and selling of immovable property, including any conditions and obligations related to taxation, ownership, or use of such property, including its use as a secondary residence 3. participating in municipal elections and elections to the European Parliament 4. requirements for residence cards for Union citizens and their family members, including family members who are not Union citizens 5. conditions applicable to the naturalisation of nationals from another Member State 6. rules applicable in the case of death, including rules on the repatriation of remains to another Member State |
E. Education or traineeship in another Member State |
1. education system in another Member State, including early childhood education and care, primary and secondary education, higher education and adult learning 2. volunteering in another Member State 3. traineeships in another Member State 4. conducting research in another Member State as part of an education programme |
F. Healthcare |
1. getting medical treatment in another Member State 2. buying prescribed pharmaceutical products in a Member State other than the one where the prescription was issued, online or in person 3. health insurance rules applicable in the case of short-term or long-term stays in another Member State, including how to apply for a European Health Insurance Card 4. general information on access rights or obligations to participate in available public preventive healthcare measures 5. services provided through national emergency numbers, including ‘112’ and ‘116’ numbers 6. rights and conditions for moving to a residential care home |
G. Citizens’ and family rights |
1. birth, custody for minor children, parental responsibilities, rules on surrogacy and adoption, including second-parent-adoption, maintenance obligations in relation to children in a cross-border family situation 2. living in a couple with different nationalities, including same-sex couples (marriage, civil or registered partnership, separation, divorce, marital property rights, the rights of cohabitants) 3. rules of gender recognition 4. rights and obligations in relation to succession in another Member State, including tax rules 5. rights and rules applicable in the case of cross-border parental child abduction |
H. Consumer rights |
1. buying goods, digital content or services (including financial services) from another Member State, online or in person 2. holding a bank account in another Member State 3. connection to utilities, such as gas, electricity, water, household waste disposal, telecoms and the internet 4. payments, including credit transfers, delays in cross-border payments 5. consumer rights and guarantees related to buying goods and services, including procedures for consumer dispute resolution and compensation 6. safety and security of consumer products 7. renting a motor vehicle |
I. Protection of personal data |
1. exercising data subjects’ rights in relation to the protection of personal data |
Areas of information related to businesses:
Area |
INFORMATION REGARDING RIGHTS, OBLIGATIONS AND RULES |
J. Starting, running and closing a business |
1. registering, changing the legal form of or closing a business (registration procedures and legal forms for carrying out business) 2. moving a business to another Member State 3. intellectual property rights (applying for a patent, registering a trademark, a drawing or a design, getting a licence for reproduction) 4. fairness and transparency in commercial practices, including consumer rights and guarantees related to selling goods and services 5. offering online facilities for cross-border payments when selling goods and services online 6. rights and obligations arising under contract law, including late payment interests 7. insolvency proceedings and liquidation of companies 8. credit insurance 9. mergers of companies or selling a business 10. civil liability of directors of a company 11. rules and obligations regarding the processing of personal data |
K. Employees |
1. terms of employment stipulated by law or statutory instrument (including working hours, paid leave, holiday entitlements, rights and obligations regarding overtime work, health checks, termination of contracts, dismissals and redundancies) 2. social security rights and obligations in the Union (registering as employer, registering employees, notifying the end of contract of an employee, paying social contributions, rights and obligations related to pensions) 3. employment of workers in other Member States (posting of workers, rules on freedom to provide services, residency requirements for workers) 4. equal treatment (rules prohibiting discrimination in the workplace, rules on equal pay for men and women and equal pay for employees on fixed-term or under permanent employment contracts) 5. rules on staff representation |
L. Taxes |
1. VAT: information on the general rules, rates and exemptions, registering for and paying VAT, obtaining a refund 2. excise duties: information on the general rules, rates and exemptions, registration for excise tax purposes and payment of excise tax, obtaining a refund 3. customs duties and other taxes and duties collected on imports 4. customs procedures for imports and exports under the Union Customs Code 5. other taxes: payment, rates, tax returns |
M. Goods |
1. obtaining CE marking 2. product rules and requirements 3. identifying applicable standards, technical specifications and getting products certified 4. mutual recognition of products not subject to Union specifications 5. requirements regarding classification, labelling and packaging for hazardous chemicals 6. distance/off-premises selling: information to be given to customers in advance, confirmation of the contract in writing, withdrawal from a contract, delivering of the goods, other specific obligations 7. defective products: consumer rights and guarantees, after-sale responsibilities, means of redress for an injured party 8. certification, labels (EMAS, energy labels, Eco-design, EU eco-label) 9. recycling and waste management |
N. Services |
1. acquiring licences, authorisations or permits with a view to starting and operating a business 2. notifying the authorities of cross-border activities 3. recognition of professional qualifications, including vocational education and training |
O. Funding a business |
1. obtaining access to finance at the Union level, including Union funding programmes and business grants 2. obtaining access to finance at national level 3. initiatives addressed to entrepreneurs (exchanges organised for new entrepreneurs, mentoring programmes, etc.) |
P. Public contracts |
1. participating in public tenders: rules and procedures 2. submitting a bid online in response to a public call for tender 3. reporting irregularities in relation to the tender process |
Q. Health and safety at work |
1. health and safety obligations in relation to different types of activity, including risk prevention, information and training |
ANNEX II
Procedures referred to in Article 6(1)
Life events |
Procedures |
Expected output subject to an assessment of the application by the competent authority in accordance with national law, where relevant |
Birth |
Requesting proof of registration of birth |
Proof of registration of birth or birth certificate |
Residence |
Requesting proof of residence |
Confirmation of registration at the current address |
Studying |
Applying for a tertiary education study financing, such as study grants and loans from a public body or institution |
Decision on the application for financing or acknowledgement of receipt |
Submitting an initial application for admission to public tertiary education institution |
Confirmation of the receipt of application |
|
Requesting academic recognition of diplomas, certificates or other proof of studies or courses |
Decision on the request for recognition |
|
Working |
Request for determination of applicable legislation in accordance with Title II of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 () |
Decision on applicable legislation |
Notifying changes in the personal or professional circumstances of the person receiving social security benefits, relevant for such benefits |
Confirmation of receipt of notification of such changes |
|
Application for a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) |
European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) |
|
Submitting an income tax declaration |
Confirmation of the receipt of the declaration |
|
Moving |
Registering a change of address |
Confirmation of deregistration at the previous address and of the registration of the new address |
Registering a motor vehicle originating from or already registered in a Member State, in standard procedures () |
Proof of registration of a motor vehicle |
|
Obtaining stickers for the use of the national road infrastructure: time-based charges (vignette), distance-based charges (toll), issued by a public body or institution |
Receipt of toll sticker or vignette or other proof of payment |
|
Obtaining emission stickers issued by a public body or institution |
Receipt of emission sticker or other proof of payment |
|
Retiring |
Claiming pension and pre-retirement benefits from compulsory schemes |
Confirmation of the receipt of the claim or decision regarding the claim for a pension or pre-retirement benefits |
Requesting information on the data related to pension from compulsory schemes |
Statement of personal pension data |
|
Starting, running and closing a business |
Notification of business activity, permission for exercising a business activity, changes of business activity and the termination of a business activity not involving insolvency or liquidation procedures, excluding the initial registration of a business activity with the business register and excluding procedures concerning the constitution of or any subsequent filing by companies or firms within the meaning of the second paragraph of Article 54 TFEU |
Confirmation of the receipt of notification or change, or of the request for permission for business activity |
|
Registration of an employer (a natural person) with compulsory pension and insurance schemes |
Confirmation of registration or social security registration number |
Registration of employees with compulsory pension and insurance schemes |
Confirmation of registration or social security registration number |
|
Submitting a corporate tax declaration |
Confirmation of the receipt of the declaration |
|
Notification to the social security schemes of the end of contract with an employee, excluding procedures for the collective termination of employee contracts |
Confirmation of the receipt of the notification |
|
Payment of social contributions for employees |
Receipt or other form of confirmation of payment of social contributions for employees |
|
Notification of a data intermediation services provider |
Confirmation of the receipt of notification |
|
Registration as a data altruism organisation recognised in the Union |
Confirmation of the registration |
|
(1)
Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the coordination of social security systems (OJ L 166, 30.4.2004, p. 1).
(2)
This covers the following vehicles: (a) any motor vehicle or trailer as referred to in Article 3 of Directive 2007/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 263, 9.10.2007, p. 1); and (b) any two- or three-wheel motor vehicle, whether twin-wheeled or otherwise, intended to travel on the road, as referred to in Article 1 of Regulation (EU) No 168/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 60, 2.3.2013, p. 52). |
ANNEX III
List of the assistance and problem-solving services referred to in point (c) of Article 2(2)
Points of single contact ( 1 )
Product Contact Points ( 2 )
Product Contact Points for Construction ( 3 )
National assistance centres for professional qualifications ( 4 )
National contact points for cross-border healthcare ( 5 )
European network of employment services (EURES) ( 6 )
Online dispute resolution (ODR) ( 7 )
( *1 ) Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data by the Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 and Decision No 1247/2002/EC (OJ L 295, 21.11.2018, p. 39).’;
( *2 ) OJ L 119, 4.5.2016, p. 1.
( *3 ) OJ L 295, 21.11.2018, p. 39’.
( ) Directive 2006/123/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 on services in the internal market (OJ L 376, 27.12.2006, p. 36).
( ) Regulation (EC) No 764/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 July 2008 laying down procedures relating to the application of certain national technical rules to products lawfully marketed in another Member State and repealing Decision No 3052/95/EC (OJ L 218, 13.8.2008, p. 21).
( ) Regulation (EU) No 305/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 2011 laying down harmonised conditions for the marketing of construction products and repealing Council Directive 89/106/EEC (OJ L 88, 4.4.2011, p. 5).
( ) Directive 2005/36/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 September 2005 on the recognition of professional qualifications (OJ L 255, 30.9.2005, p. 22).
( ) Directive 2011/24/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 2011 on the application of patients’ rights in cross-border healthcare (OJ L 88, 4.4.2011, p. 45).
( ) Regulation (EU) 2016/589 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 April 2016 on a European network of employment services (EURES), workers’ access to mobility services and the further integration of labour markets, and amending Regulations (EU) No 492/2011 and (EU) No 1296/2013 (OJ L 107, 22.4.2016, p. 1).
( ) Regulation (EU) No 524/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 May 2013 on online dispute resolution for consumer disputes and amending Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 and Directive 2009/22/EC (Regulation on consumer ODR) (OJ L 165, 18.6.2013, p. 1).