EU looks to speed up access to social benefits from abroad
Nicolas Schmit - Photo © European Union 2023
(BRUSSELS) - The Commission proposed to make access to social security services quicker and simpler across borders Wednesday, by making full use of digital tools, reducing administrative burden for citizens and business.
The Commission says this will improve the exchanges of information between national social security institutions and speed up the recognition and granting of eligible benefits across borders. It will thus make it easier for Europeans to live, work and travel abroad, for companies to do business in other EU countries, and for national administrations to coordinate social security across borders.
Despite previous initiatives to improve the cross-border flow of social security information, national institutions, healthcare providers and labour inspectorates still face difficulties accessing and sharing data, due to insufficient interoperability between national systems. Costs are also incurred, for instance, when issuing and verifying entitlements documents.
"Today's Communication contributes to simplifying their lives by facilitating their interactions with national authorities and giving them speedier access to their eligible social benefits from abroad such as pensions or healthcare," said the Commissioner for Social Rights Nicolas Schmit: "At the same time, it will have a huge cost- and time-saving effect on businesses, national authorities and labour inspectorates, so it's really a win-win."
The Commission calls on Member States to:
- Accelerate the national implementation of the Electronic Exchange of Social Security Information (EESSI) so that it is fully operational by the end of 2024 across Europe. EESSI digitalises the exchanges among national social security institutions, to move away from paper-based, time-consuming and cumbersome procedures.
- Deliver more social security coordination procedures fully online, to make it even easier for people to move and work abroad, and ensure they get fast access to their eligible benefits. Member States can build on the Single Digital Gateway Regulation, which foresees a fully online delivery of some important administrative procedures to citizens and businesses by 12 December 2023 at the latest.
- Fully engage in the European Social Security Pass (ESSPASS) pilot activities, which explore how to simplify the issuance and verification of citizens' social security entitlements across borders.
- Work towards introducing EU Digital Identity (EUDI) wallets, which will allow EU citizens to carry digital versions of entitlement documents, such as the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), making it easier for social security institutions, labour inspectorates and healthcare providers to instantly verify these documents.
The Commission will support EU Member States in implementing these actions by providing technical assistance, including through the Technical Support Instrument, and making available EU funding, for instance through the Digital Europe Programme, InvestEU, the European Regional Development Fund, and the European Social Fund Plus.
The European Labour Authority will also play an active role by collecting best practice examples and facilitating regular exchanges among national authorities.
Digital coordination of social security systems in Europe - guide