Why interoperability matters

Every time a citizen enters the same information for yet another public service, or a business sends identical documents to different authorities, inconsistencies in the EU’s digital public infrastructure become visible. The Interoperable Europe Act, in force as of April 2024, is the EU’s regulatory instrument to tackle those inconsistencies.

The Act aims to make public sector data and services flow securely across borders, sectors and levels of government. It builds on the European Interoperability Framework by turning existing voluntary guidance into binding rules, backed by new governance structures and systematic EU interoperability assessments.

The potential gains are significant. A Joint Research Centre report and the Commission’s impact assessment estimate that enhanced interoperability of public sector information systems could save up to 24 million hours per year for citizens. For businesses, it could save 30 billion hours. Moreover, potential cost savings for EU businesses are estimated to between €521–578bn. These figures underpin the EU’s Digital Decade target that 100% of key public services should be available online by 2030.

Enhanced interoperability of public sector information systems could save up to 24 million hours per year for citizens. For businesses, it could save 30 billion hours

A new governance model for interoperable Europe

The IEA’s governance framework is anchored in public-private collaboration, and engagement with an EU‑wide community.

The Interoperable Europe Board brings together one representative from each Member State, and from the Commission. Alongside them are observers including the Committee of the Regions, ENISA and the European Cybersecurity Competence Centre. The Board steers strategy and adopts the agenda, setting the EU’s interoperability priorities and coordinating investments.

Interoperable Europe Act Governance

A broader Interoperable Europe Community, open to public administrations, GovTech firms, civil society and academics, complements the Board. This Community contributes expertise through the Interoperable Europe Portal.

Within EU Institutions, interoperability coordinators mainstream interoperability assessments into policy and IT design. Member States, meanwhile, must designate National Competent Authorities and a Single Point of Contact to orchestrate implementation at national level. In practice, this creates a multilevel network that connects EU Institutions to national governments, regional authorities and digital agencies.

Seven priorities for 2026: the political stakes of interoperability

The first Interoperable Europe Agenda for 2025–26 translates this framework into seven priority areas, under four elements. Behind these policy terms lies a clear political message: interoperability is about deciding what kind of digital state Europe will build.

Interoperable Europe Agenda elements

Priority 1: Shared interoperability landscape

Includes mapping recommended and high‑potential solutions into a high‑level interoperability architecture. Supports peer learning, and identifies gaps where joint solutions are still missing.

Priority 2: Cross‑border data exchange

Plans a semantic registry, clearer reference standards for public entities and training on the design of application programming interfaces (APIs), to make cross‑border data flows easier.

Priority 3: Targeted support for EU policies

Focuses on EU policies where interoperability support can have the greatest impact, using interoperability assessments, digital‑ready policymaking material and shared solutions on the Interoperable Europe Portal.

Priority 4: Innovative solutions for public sector challenges

Promotes public‑private collaboration and GovTech initiatives to build modular, reusable solutions to concrete administrative problems.

Priority 5: Digital sovereignty

Includes actions on the EU Open-Source Solutions Catalogue and guidance on sharing and reusing interoperability solutions, to reduce dependence on proprietary, non‑EU technologies.

Priority 6: AI in the public sector

Tackles data governance and AI literacy, and aims to move from pilots to scalable AI deployments that reuse EU core vocabularies, supported by initiatives like the European Commission's Public Sector Tech Watch and the Portuguese AI4PA.

Priority 7: Multi‑Country Projects for interoperability

The Agenda uses forthcoming Multi‑Country Projects under the Digital Europe Work Programme 2025–2027, with around €6m foreseen at a 50% funding rate.

Four challenges in implementing the Interoperable Europe Act

Whether the IEA succeeds may depend on how four political challenges are managed in the coming years.

IEA challenges and recommendations

The first challenge is Member State asymmetries. Legal frameworks, administrative cultures and digital maturity levels vary widely across the EU. Some countries demonstrate decades of experience with secure data‑exchange infrastructures; others still rely on legacy IT and paper‑based processes.

The second is the public‑sector innovation gaps. Many administrations still depend on fragmented architectures and custom integrations that are difficult to modernise. The Agenda’s emphasis on GovTech, regulatory sandboxes and multi‑country projects is promising, but it will only matter if administrations have the capacity and incentives to adopt modular, reusable components.

The potential of the Interoperable Europe Act lies in proportionate, context‑sensitive assessments that can be reused across projects, supported by clear decision trees and investment in skills

Third, interoperability assessments could become an administrative burden. If treated as a box‑ticking exercise, they will add friction without improving outcomes. The IEA’s potential lies in proportionate, context‑sensitive assessments that can be reused across projects, supported by clear decision trees and investment in skills.

Finally, greater data exchange raises legitimate concerns about security, data protection and trust. Citizens need to be informed that their data is used only for lawful purposes, accessed by authorised officials and traceable through robust audit trails. Interoperability has to move together with privacy and security‑by‑design, including role‑based access, strong authentication, encryption and transparent governance arrangements.

Interoperability as a democratic choice

Politicians often frame interoperability as a technical concern, yet it is deeply embedded in political choices. It shapes who controls critical infrastructures, who can access and reuse public data, and how evenly the benefits of digitisation are distributed across social groups.

Interoperability shapes who controls critical infrastructures, who can access and reuse public data, and how evenly the benefits of digitisation are distributed across social groups

If the IEA achieves its objectives, it will reinforce citizens’ trust in the state by making public services faster, more predictable and genuinely European in scope. If it fails, fragmented systems and digital inequalities may deepen frustration with public institutions.

Nonetheless, the IEA already provides a governance framework, a clear agenda and concrete tools. The task now is to use them not only to fix IT systems, but to rethink what an integrated, democratic EU digital public sector should look like.

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