Reference metadata describe statistical concepts and methodologies used for the collection and generation of data. They provide information on data quality and, since they are strongly content-oriented, assist users in interpreting the data. Reference metadata, unlike structural metadata, can be decoupled from the data.
Statistical Office of the Republic of Slovenia (SURS)
1.2. Contact organisation unit
Annex I: Business Statistics Division, Structural Statistics and SBR Section (SBR = Statistical Business Register);
National Accounts Division, Macro-Economic Statistics Section fo Section K
Annex II: Business Statistics Division, Structural Statistics and SBR Section (SBR = Statistical Business Register);
Environment and Energy Statistics Division, Environmental Statistics Section for environment statistics
Annex III: Business Statistics Division, Structural Statistics and SBR Section (SBR = Statistical Business Register)
Annex IV: Business Statistics Division, Structural Statistics and SBR Section (SBR = Statistical Business Register)
1.3. Contact name
Confidential because of GDPR
1.4. Contact person function
Confidential because of GDPR
1.5. Contact mail address
Litostrojska cesta 54, 10000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
1.6. Contact email address
Confidential because of GDPR
1.7. Contact phone number
Confidential because of GDPR
1.8. Contact fax number
Confidential because of GDPR
2.1. Metadata last certified
14 February 2023
2.2. Metadata last posted
14 February 2023
2.3. Metadata last update
14 February 2023
3.1. Data description
Structural business statistics (SBS) describes the structure, conduct and performance of economic activities, down to the most detailed activity level (several hundred economic sectors).
SBS covers all activities of the non-financial business economy with the exception of agricultural activities and personal services. Limited information is available on banking, insurance and pension funds.
Main characteristics (variables) of the SBS data category:
Business demographic variables (e.g. Number of enterprises)
"Output related" variables (e.g. Turnover, Value added)
"Input related" variables: labour input (e.g. Employment, Hours worked); goods and services input (e.g. Total of purchases); capital input (e.g. Material investments)
3.2. Classification system
Statistical Classification of Economic Activities in the European Community (NACE): NACE Rev.1 was used until 2001, NACE Rev. 1.1 since 2002, and NACE Rev 2 is used from 2008 onwards. Key data were double reported in NACE Rev.1.1 and NACE Rev.2 for 2008. From 2009 onwards, only NACE Rev.2 data are available.
The regional breakdown of the EU Member States is based on the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS). Detailed information about the consecutive NUTS Regulations can be found at Eurostat's website
The SBS coverage was limited to Sections C to K of NACE Rev.1.1 until 2007. Starting from the reference year 2008 data is available for Sections B to N and Division S95 of NACE Rev.2. With 2013 as the first reference year information is published on NACE codes K6411, K6419 and K65 and its breakdown.
Enterprises are used (legal units that have turnover, employees or investments during the reference year).
3.6. Statistical population
Target population is fully covered (all required NACE activity codes, size classes and statistical units). The frame for identifying units for the population is Statistical Business Register. No cut-off threshold was applied.
3.7. Reference area
The country or geographic area are fully covered, no data are excluded. The branches of foreign enterprises are included in the results relating the activities abroad of enterprises of the reporting country. In the results is included all the activities of the resident enterprises and branches.
3.8. Coverage - Time
1995-2020
3.9. Base period
Not applicable.
Number of enterprises and number of local units are expressed in units.
Monetary data are expressed in millions of €.
Employment variables are expressed in units.
Per head values are expressed in thousands of € per head.
Ratios are expressed in percentages.
2020
SBS data refer to the annual results and rarely data refer to fiscal year. We do not apply special methods when there is mismatch between the calandar and the actual reference period.
6.1. Institutional Mandate - legal acts and other agreements
All data are available in the published on-line databases. The release calendar enables users to search releases from 1 January 2015 onwards and to review releases announced for the current year. All users get data at the same time. Users can also see press conferences on link below:
SURS publishes Release calendar till the end of the year for the next year. Preliminary SBS results are available within 6 months following the end of the reference period (T+6) and final data within 17 months (T+17).
10.2. Dissemination format - Publications
SBS data for Annexes I-IV for reference year 2020 were published: 6/24/2021 (preliminary data) and 05/27/2022 (final data). Publications are also available in English.
With the press release data are also available on online SiStat Database with detailed statistics in tables.
10.4. Dissemination format - microdata access
Statistical Office Slovenia (SURS) also enables access to microdata for statistical analyses and scientific research purpose. It is an option to get access to microdata which can be obtained by registered research institutions, registered researchers and researchers in the general government sector. The request to access microdata must be submitted on the prescribed form: (more information you can find on this link). The requests are given to further consideration to the Data protection Committee at SURS.
If the request is in line with the rules of providing access to microdata, a contract is signed with the research institution and the researcher that will access the data signs a declaration on data protection. No definition available for this concept
10.5. Dissemination format - other
Data are sent to Eurostat and are publically available in their database. Data are used for the calculation of EU aggregates.
Nationally data are published in the news releases (First release and E-release) and in on-line SiStat database.
10.6. Documentation on methodology
Methodological explanations are available on our website.
10.7. Quality management - documentation
Annual quality report in English is available on our website.
11.1. Quality assurance
Quality Statement of the Statistical Office of the Republic of Slovenia and other explanations about quality in our national statistics can be found on our website.
11.2. Quality management - assessment
Since statistics are calculated on the base of full coverage from administrative or existing statistical sources we do not have specific problems with quality.
12.1. Relevance - User Needs
The main users of SBS data are public sector, business entities, research and education sector (researchers and students), media. Most interested are in turnover, value added and employment data.
12.2. Relevance - User Satisfaction
We do not organize survey related to the user`s satisfaction regarding the availability and the quality of the SBS data. Some information about user satisfaction was published in special release.
12.3. Completeness
All data required with the regulation is disseminated except not available regional data on investment.
Data for number of employees in full time equivalent units and number of hours worked by employees are of low quality and used only for calculating Community totals which cannot be disseminated at national level.
Enterprise statistics with the breakdown of turnover by type of activity is missing because of missing source.
13.1. Accuracy - overall
We do not have problems with the coverage bias because we have full coverage for structural business statistics.
Approximately 8 months after first release the results are normally final.
13.2. Sampling error
Since in principle there is complete coverage, the sampling error is not calculated.
13.3. Non-sampling error
Since statistics are calculated on the basis of full coverage from the administrative or existing sources, the non-response rate is assumed to be 0. That is to say, for each unit of the observed population, we have data on at least one variable (from administrative sources).
In certain cases the applied administrative sources are not sufficiently broken down, or do not contain all the necessary variables. For example, the missing variable is Purchase value of goods and materials sold in the Prepayment of income taxes for the income realised upon the pursuit of activities. For the calculation of this variable we look at the lowest level of the Standard Classification of Activity (SKD) (5th level of SKD or appropriate higher level) and consider the share of this variable (Purchase value of goods and materials sold) in Cost of goods, materials and services (this variable exists in the declaration) from annual accounts for self- employed persons.
The share of variable Purchase value of goods and materials sold obtained from the source Prepayment of income taxes for the income realised upon the pursuit of activities can be calculated.
The item non-response occurs also for those variables, the data for which are obtained from existing sources or surveys. For example, for the set of variables obtained from the investment survey, the item non-response rate is the same as the unit non-response rate for this survey.
14.1. Timeliness
According to the Regulation, the results of the First Release should be prepared within 10 months following the end of the reference period (T+10). At the same time, data should also be communicated to Eurostat and published at SURS. At SURS we publish first data for national users in June (T+6).
First release of the data for the reference year 2020 was 24th June 2021.
14.2. Punctuality
We do not have any delay in transmission of data to Eurostat.
15.1. Comparability - geographical
The same statistical concepts are applied in the entire national territory.
15.2. Comparability - over time
The length of comparable time series is 2005-2020.
15.3. Coherence - cross domain
Data are comparable with other statistical domains. The differences can occur because of different methodology for calculation of variables or observed units.
Differences between structural business statistics (SBS) and business demography (BD) arise due to additional sources that SBS still can use till dissemination of final data in May (data from Business Service Statistics and additional information on performance of enterprises). BD is based on Slovenian Statistical Business Register whose data are published before, in December.
15.4. Coherence - internal
The aggregates are consistent with their main sub-aggregates.
We do not have special statistical survey for SBS and for that reason no burden on respondents.
17.1. Data revision - policy
Data revision is planned. Due to the needs of users for timely information, data are published that meet the criteria of the quality of official statistical data.
Regular revisions include a more complete data source. Data are revised when newer and more quality data respectively can significantly contribute to the quality of data-based decision-making and when due to publication deadlines determined by the European legislation less accurate data are published. Methodological explanations about data revision at SURS are published on the website.
17.2. Data revision - practice
No definition available for this conceptIn a long period we did not revise the data transmitted to Eurostat. Preliminary and final data differ in some minor extent because when preparing final data we have more time for checking and some additional sources are available.
18.1. Source data
SBS data are based on Slovenian Statistical Business Register with data on units and employment. For all other variables we use administrative sources (main source annual reposrts and tax data). Only data on investments, payments for agency workers and payments to sub-contractors are used from statistical surveys.
18.2. Frequency of data collection
Annual data collection
18.3. Data collection
We do not have statistical survey for SBS and special questionnaires. Data collection base are administrative sources.
18.4. Data validation
Before the data are transmitted to Eurostat we check out data with EDIT Tool (intra-dataset check, inter-dataset checks).
We also check if data are consistent with Business Demography and Investment.
We compare data with National Accounts and Employment statistics within our institution.
We have different methodology and observation units so we can not check consistency between the data available in the Institution and the data available outside the Institution but we look at releases in other institutions.
18.5. Data compilation
In certain cases the applied administrative sources are not sufficiently broken down, or do not contain all the necessary variables. For example, the missing variable is Purchase value of goods and materials sold in the Prepayment of income taxes for the income realised upon the pursuit of activities. For the calculation of this variable we look at the lowest level of the Standard Classification of Activity (SKD) (5th level of SKD or appropriate higher level) and consider the share of this variable (Purchase value of goods and materials sold) in Cost of goods, materials and services (this variable exists in the declaration) from annual accounts for self- employed persons.
The item non-response occurs also for those variables, the data for which are obtained from existing sources or surveys. For example, for the set of variables obtained from the investment survey, the item non-response rate is the same as the unit non-response rate for this survey.
For the time being, there is no estimate on the missing values. A certain estimate is being made for individual sources which are insufficiently broken down. For example, the micro variable Net sales revenue is missing in the turnover tax declaration. To calculate this variable at the lowest level of SKD (5-digit SKD or an appropriate higher level) the share of such a variable should be considered in the whole turnover in the final accounts for individual entrepreneurs. When calculating the variable Net sales revenue, the right shares are multiplied by all turnover from the turnover tax declaration.
18.6. Adjustment
No corections are applied in case the reference period differs from the calender year. Data differ in some minor extent.
No additional comments.
Structural business statistics (SBS) describes the structure, conduct and performance of economic activities, down to the most detailed activity level (several hundred economic sectors).
SBS covers all activities of the non-financial business economy with the exception of agricultural activities and personal services. Limited information is available on banking, insurance and pension funds.
Main characteristics (variables) of the SBS data category:
Business demographic variables (e.g. Number of enterprises)
"Output related" variables (e.g. Turnover, Value added)
"Input related" variables: labour input (e.g. Employment, Hours worked); goods and services input (e.g. Total of purchases); capital input (e.g. Material investments)
Enterprises are used (legal units that have turnover, employees or investments during the reference year).
Target population is fully covered (all required NACE activity codes, size classes and statistical units). The frame for identifying units for the population is Statistical Business Register. No cut-off threshold was applied.
The country or geographic area are fully covered, no data are excluded. The branches of foreign enterprises are included in the results relating the activities abroad of enterprises of the reporting country. In the results is included all the activities of the resident enterprises and branches.
2020
SBS data refer to the annual results and rarely data refer to fiscal year. We do not apply special methods when there is mismatch between the calandar and the actual reference period.
We do not have problems with the coverage bias because we have full coverage for structural business statistics.
Approximately 8 months after first release the results are normally final.
Number of enterprises and number of local units are expressed in units.
Monetary data are expressed in millions of €.
Employment variables are expressed in units.
Per head values are expressed in thousands of € per head.
Ratios are expressed in percentages.
In certain cases the applied administrative sources are not sufficiently broken down, or do not contain all the necessary variables. For example, the missing variable is Purchase value of goods and materials sold in the Prepayment of income taxes for the income realised upon the pursuit of activities. For the calculation of this variable we look at the lowest level of the Standard Classification of Activity (SKD) (5th level of SKD or appropriate higher level) and consider the share of this variable (Purchase value of goods and materials sold) in Cost of goods, materials and services (this variable exists in the declaration) from annual accounts for self- employed persons.
The item non-response occurs also for those variables, the data for which are obtained from existing sources or surveys. For example, for the set of variables obtained from the investment survey, the item non-response rate is the same as the unit non-response rate for this survey.
For the time being, there is no estimate on the missing values. A certain estimate is being made for individual sources which are insufficiently broken down. For example, the micro variable Net sales revenue is missing in the turnover tax declaration. To calculate this variable at the lowest level of SKD (5-digit SKD or an appropriate higher level) the share of such a variable should be considered in the whole turnover in the final accounts for individual entrepreneurs. When calculating the variable Net sales revenue, the right shares are multiplied by all turnover from the turnover tax declaration.
SBS data are based on Slovenian Statistical Business Register with data on units and employment. For all other variables we use administrative sources (main source annual reposrts and tax data). Only data on investments, payments for agency workers and payments to sub-contractors are used from statistical surveys.
Annual
According to the Regulation, the results of the First Release should be prepared within 10 months following the end of the reference period (T+10). At the same time, data should also be communicated to Eurostat and published at SURS. At SURS we publish first data for national users in June (T+6).
First release of the data for the reference year 2020 was 24th June 2021.
The same statistical concepts are applied in the entire national territory.
The length of comparable time series is 2005-2020.
