Instructions to authorities

What requirements does the SDG regulation set for authorities?

The EU single market enables people, goods, services and capital to move freely. The Single Digital Gateway regulation (SDGr) entered into force at the end of 2018. Its objective is to provide citizens and businesses with the information they need in cross-border situations and to direct them to the services they need so that free movement within the EU single market can be easily achieved. The regulation obliges EU member states to produce information online, organise assistance services and digitalise services across borders.

Enable cross-border service activities

The SDG regulation requires that the services of its Annex II procedures can be accessed electronically from another EU member state. In addition, all e-services of the regulation’s Annex I services must be implemented across borders. Email is not accepted as an e-service, but an eForm with an email backend is accepted as such.

Enable cross-border identification

If identification is required for using the services, it must be possible to identify yourself across borders using eIDAS identification.

A cross-border client can also be offered an alternative way of using e-services, such as their own eForm that does not require identification.

However, eIDAS identification is mandatory if the e-service is connected to the OOTS.

You can get more detailed instructions on eIDAS identification from the Digital and Population Data Services Agency’s Suomi.fi Palveluhallinta.

Enable foreign municipality and country information, postal code and phone number

An authority must ensure that the user can provide foreign

  • municipality and country information
  • postal code
  • phone number.

Enable cross-border payments

If a service covered by the SDG regulation (such as a business permit) is subject to a fee, it must also be possible to make the payment across borders.

In practice, there are two possibilities:

  1. If a payment for the service is required afterwards (e.g., through the State Treasury), invoicing to another EU member state must be made possible.
  2. If the payment must be made in advance, it must be possible for the user to make cross-border online payments.

The State Treasury provides payment services for authorities with the Suomi.fi Payments service.

Enable foreign businesses to use services without a Finnish business ID

Many electronic business services require a Finnish business ID (Y-tunnus) so that they can be used.

To enable the use of services across borders, the e-service must enable the use of the VIES ID.

The ID consists nationally of a company ID and a country prefix. In autumn 2023, only corporations are available in the service, but partnerships will connect to the system in 2024.

More information on the VIES ID

You can also use VIES data through an interface or download the data for yourself: VIES API app and downloading data (viesapi.eu)

Enable cross-border businesses to use services without electronic authorisation

Electronic business services often require confirmation of a person’s right to act on behalf of a business.

For each electronic business service, it would be important to assess whether requesting an authorisation from a cross-border user is mandatory at all.

For example, could the authorisation be

  • verified with a Trade Register extract provided as an attachment or in the OOTS
  • substituted with the person’s own assurance that they have a right to act on behalf of the business.

If the e-service is connected to the OOTS, also enable the independent submission of evidence

Although the SDG regulation requires the e-services of Annex II procedures to connect to the OOTS, the regulation does not require the user to use the system. The user must be given the opportunity to submit the evidence themselves in the e-service as attachments

For example, the user can submit their evidence using the “drag and drop” functionality. The solutions in question may also work with the wallet solutions under development.