EUDI Regulation & eDelivery in 2025: ERDS and other upcoming changes

eDelivery has strong links to Regulation (EU) 910/2014 on electronic identification and trust services, known as the European Digital Identity Regulation (or EUDI Regulation). The EUDI Regulation aims to provide a secure and trustworthy framework for electronic identification and authentication for citizens and businesses across the European Union and creating a secure framework for cross-border digital interactions and ensuring that electronic transactions have the same legal status as traditional paper-based ones under certain conditions.

The key component of the regulation to which eDelivery is linked is the Electronic Registered Delivery Service (ERDS), providing legal effect and admissibility to data sent and received in specific electronic ways. The OASIS family of specifications used by eDelivery (AS4, SMP and BDXL) is one of the two technical means for the implementation of ERDS already recognised in the ETSI & CEN framework of standards (more specifically ETSI EN 319 522-4).

The Regulation from 2014 was amended on 11 April 2024 and published in its amended form in the Official Journal of the European Union on 30 April 2024.

The Regulation was revised to address the shortcomings of the previous regulation by improving its effectiveness, refining the rules for trust services, introducing further ones and the EUDI Wallet. As part of the Regulation's amendments, several implementing acts are being drafted, one of which pertaining to ERDS. As established by Article 44(2), the European Commission will, through implementing acts, establish a list of reference standards and, where necessary, set specifications and procedures for sending and receiving data. This act will establish a legal framework to facilitate the cross-border recognition of qualified electronic registered delivery services across the European Union. The act must be adopted by 21 May 2025.

After the adoption of the act, eDelivery will provide input to ETSI, who plans to revise the framework of standards that includes the standards ETSI EN 319 521 and ETSI EN 319 522-1/2/3/4-1/4-2/4-3. The input for eDelivery will be focused on the revised use of the AS4, SMP and BDXL for ERDS.

eDelivery Building Block

eDelivery is a Building Block provided by the European Commission, offering technical specifications, installable software and services for secure digital data exchange across a network of nodes.

The eDelivery specifications include the eDelivery AS4 profile, an open technical specification ensuring secure, payload-agnostic and reliable data exchange; the eDelivery SMP profile, designed for publishing service metadata within a 4-corner network; the eDelivery BDXL profile, which enables locating Access Points within the network; and the eDelivery ebCore Party ID profile, a technical specification for the recommended notation for party addressing.

Stay tuned for the latest updates on eDelivery services by checking the Building Block's X and web page. For more information, do not hesitate to register for personalised news or contact us via our portal or by email: EC-EDELIVERY-SUPPORT@ec.europa.eu.