Progress on eDelivery 2.0 specifications and beyond

The European Commission's eDelivery Building Block, a key enabler of secure digital data exchange across the EU, continues to evolve. This article explores the status of the next-generation eDelivery 2.0 specifications, their adoption in digital ecosystems, as well as improvements to the eDelivery conformance testing.

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Road to 2.0 profile adoption

Following the 2023 public consultation on the 2.0 draft specifications, the eDelivery team made substantial revisions to the initially proposed drafts based on feedback and internal analysis. This collaborative process led to the new draft specifications for the eDelivery AS4 2.0 and eDelivery SMP 2.0 profiles. The 2024 drafts included advancements in cryptography to leverage the best available security measures. To refine these aspects, the eDelivery team has incorporated input from a cryptography expert.

Notably, the refinements in the AS4 and SMP profiles also necessitated adjustments to the BDXL and ebCore Party Id profiles to ensure complete consistency across the entire eDelivery framework. As a result, we have published the second drafts of all four eDelivery profiles: AS4, SMP, BDXL and ebCore Party Id. The revised draft profiles were presented during the February meeting of the Interoperability Forum, a group dedicated to vendors who build eDelivery-compliant products.

The 2024 draft specifications were released for public consultation (8 March - 8 April 2024), which yielded few comments. The eDelivery team interprets this minimal feedback as a general endorsement of the proposed changes. As announced during the April meeting of the Interoperability Forum, the team is now confident in moving forward with the revised 2.0 specifications.

The next crucial step are the Interoperability Events (11 & 25 June 2024). These remote sessions will bring together solution providers with their proof-of-concept implementations based on the latest draft specifications, including key cryptography changes. Participants will have the opportunity to test their implementations against each other and thus validating interoperability between different solutions built on the new eDelivery AS4 specifications. The eDelivery team, responsible for Domibus, a sample AS4 product, will also participate.

Assuming a successful Interoperability Event with no unforeseen roadblocks, formal publication of the new specifications is expected in the second half of 2024. While some early adopters might be ready by 2025, a more realistic timeframe for widespread product support for the new specifications is likely to be 2026 onwards. The European Commission's Domibus is tentatively slated for an update by the end of 2025.

eDelivery digital ecosystems

eDelivery is experiencing increasing adoption across various EU digital ecosystems. Three of them have transitioned to production this year:

For more on the new eDelivery digital ecosystems in production, see [☄️] New eDelivery-based ecosystems live in the first half of 2024.

As for planned production implementations:

Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) is in the early stages of planning ATHINA, a system for collecting and analysing health threat data. While eDelivery is under consideration, a final decision on its inclusion has not yet been made.
Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) system, led by DG TAXUD like CESOP, is assessing the use of eDelivery's TAPAS implementation for secure communication with the CBAM central platform. CBAM aims to address carbon emissions transparency for goods imported into the EU.

We invite you to follow our website for further updates on ATHINA, CBAM and other potential eDelivery digital ecosystems.

eDelivery monitoring

We are committed to continuous monitoring and improvement of eDelivery. We track key metrics such as ecosystem adoption, Access Points, exchanged messages and interconnected organisations through a public dashboard. This data informs ongoing development efforts and ensures eDelivery remains a relevant and effective solution for secure digital data exchange across Europe.

Our monitoring dashboard offers a comprehensive view of eDelivery's adoption and impact. It serves as a valuable resource for stakeholders and the public to understand the Building Block's progress and potential.

Please note that we monitor eDelivery digital ecosystems through our own research. There is no formal qualification process for inclusion; digital ecosystems are added as they are discovered or reported. We encourage national authorities to share information about existing eDelivery implementations to enhance monitoring and promote broader adoption.

To foster knowledge sharing, we are gathering registrations for a webinar in December. This will be an opportunity to showcase eDelivery use cases.

eDelivery in data spaces

eDelivery plays a role in the EU's Common European Data Spaces initiative, ensuring secure and interoperable data exchange across various domains. It aligns with the Data Spaces Support Centre's blueprint for data space creation and contributes to building a future-proof, scalable data ecosystem. eDelivery is being integrated into the following data spaces:

Once Only Technical System (OOTS). This first European data space is live since December 2023.
HealthData@EU. This pilot is currently undergoing testing for national contact point data exchange with eDelivery being used for communication between national points and central EU services.
European Mobility Data Space (EMDS). Currently under discussion for potential implementation, building on existing eDelivery-powered ecosystems in the mobility sector.

Market of conformant solutions

In parallel with the eDelivery 2.0 specification development, the eDelivery team has been diligently working on improvements to the conformance testing service. This service guarantees that eDelivery-conformant solutions offered by vendors adhere to the eDelivery specifications.

The migration from the Minder platform to the Interoperability Test Bed (ITB) for AS4 conformance testing in 2023 ensured continued testing with the same set of tests. With a new test suite scheduled for July 2024, the new platform will be ready to support testing for optional eDelivery profile enhancements like the Pull Feature, Dynamic Sender and Dynamic Receiver, which was not available until now. Further improvements to strengthen Common Profile testing are planned for later this year. These upgrades aim to ensure robust, standardised testing for all eDelivery-conformant solutions.

To improve user experience and transparency, the eDelivery team has also redesigned the listing of eDelivery-conformant solutions. The new presentation features a new design that simplifies information access and highlights the level of confidence users can have in the conformance of specific services and products. For more information on what the new view brings to both software vendors and users, see New listing of eDelivery AS4 conformant solutions.

Furthermore, the eDelivery team has started sharing AS4 user needs with the community of conformant solutions vendors. This is another positive move forward as we strive for greater transparency.

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.

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