"This report focuses on the digitalisation of front- and back-office processes in monetary social benefits. In 10 EU Member States and Norway, a digital application is possible for all, or all but one, of the nine benefits investigated. In at least five Member States, paper applications have been discontinued for some of the benefits. The automation of benefits, which removes the need to apply and prevents non-take-up, is most common for child benefits. Digitalisation is often applied to identify overpayments, but rarely to detect cases of non-take-up. It also plays a role in assessing applications and processing documents. People in atypical situations are often excluded from digital processes. Trust can be enhanced by engaging stakeholders in system development and strengthening the roles of research, civil society and the judiciary. The resource savings made possible by digitalisation are often envisaged as being used to provide additional support for people who need it, but evidence for this is lacking."

Support: Digital

ISBN (PDF) : 978-92-897-2516-3