E-government and electronic identification

Data extracted in March 2026

Planned article update: March 2027

Highlights

In 2025, 72% of EU citizens interacted with public authorities online in the preceding 12 months, with top users in Denmark (98%), the Netherlands, Finland and Sweden (all 96%).

Electronic ID (eID) usage varies in the EU, with 52% of citizens using it to access services – ranging from over 90% in Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands, Sweden and Estonia, to 15% or less in Germany, Slovakia, Bulgaria and Romania.

In 2025, 61% of those aged 35-44 in the EU used eID, compared with only 36% among individuals aged 65-74.

Individuals who used a website or app of a public authority in the last 12 months, 2025

The digital transformation has reshaped many aspects of our daily lives, including interactions between governments and citizens across the EU. Effective digital public services, or e-government, can make government services more accessible, transparent and efficient. In this, electronic identification (eID) serves as a person's digital passport, allowing them to verify their identity online and securely access services over the internet.

The European Commission's Digital Decade programme has set out the target that by 2030 all key public services need to be accessible via the internet, as well as everyone having the option to use eID to identify themselves online. But are citizens using the e-government and eID solutions that are available to them?

This article delves into recent statistical data on the use of e-government and eID across the EU and shows how this varies between countries and different population groups. The statistics come from the EU survey on the use of ICT in households and by individuals.

Modernised public interaction: e-government use in the EU

In 2025, 72% of people aged 16-74 in the EU stated that they had used a website or app of a public authority in the previous 12 months. However, this value varied greatly when looking at EU countries individually: over 90% of people had used e-government in the last 12 months in Denmark (98%), the Netherlands, Finland, Sweden (all 96%), and France (91%). Meanwhile, the same was true for only 36% of people in Bulgaria and 24% of people in Romania. Similar to its EU neighbours, Norway had a very high value of e-government use at 98% (see Figure 1).

Looking at different e-government activities in more detail reveals that, in 2025, people stated that they used e-government services in the previous 12 months most often to obtain information about services, benefits, laws, opening hours or similar (44%). This was followed by accessing personal information (41%), submitting a tax declaration and making an appointment or a reservation (both 38%). When comparing 2025 data with 2022 in figure 2, all activities increased, with the exception of the downloading or printing of official forms (44% in 2022 to 37% in 2025). This is possibly due to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic in the 12 months preceding the 2022 survey, when printed forms were frequently required. The data could also show a general trend away from downloaded and printed forms towards more fully online solutions.

Identifying yourself online: eID use in the EU

Electronic identification (eID) allows people to securely verify their identity and access services across the EU. In 2025, 52% of people aged 16-74 in the EU stated that they had used their eID to access online services for private purposes in the previous 12 months. The result in individual EU countries varied from over 90% in Denmark (99%), Finland (96%), the Netherlands (95%), Sweden (92%) and Estonia (91%), to 15% or less in Germany (15%), Slovakia (14%), Bulgaria (12%) and Romania (10%). A high value could also be found in Norway at 96% (see Figure 3).

In 2025, the age groups to use their eID most often in the previous 12 months were people aged 35-44 and 25-34 (both 61%), followed by those aged 45-54 (56%). Unlike for other types of internet activities, the youngest cohort aged 16-24 was not the strongest user group, with 50% of them stating to have used their eID in the preceding 12 months. This was similar to those aged 55-64 (48%), with the lowest number of people aged 65-74 using their eID at 36% (see Figure 4).

Electronic identification can be used to access different kinds of services, provided by the public sector (of the same or of another European country), or by the business sector.

In 2025, the highest percentage of people stating that they had used their eID in the previous 12 months to access services provided by public authorities or public services of their own country was found in the Netherlands (95%), followed by Finland (86%), Estonia (85%) and France (84%). The EU average was 46%. Norway also recorded a high share at 88%.

The eIDAS Regulation mandates that all EU Member States must recognise eIDs from other EU countries that have been notified to the European Commission. The highest percentage of people stating that they had used their eID in the previous 12 months to access services provided by public authorities or public services of other European countries was found in Denmark (80%), followed by Luxembourg (25%) and Sweden (23%). The EU average was 9%. Norway scored higher than most EU countries at 23%.

Looking at offers from the private sector, the highest percentage of people stating that they had used their eID in the previous 12 months to access services provided by the business sector was found in Estonia (81%), followed by Finland (80%) and Sweden (73%). The EU average was 25%. Again, Norway also had a high share at 81% (see Figure 5).

Source data for tables and graphs

E-gov and eID - Graphs and tables

Data sources

The data presented in this article come from Eurostat's survey on the use of ICT in households and by individuals, which is updated on an annual basis to ensure that the data collected remain relevant. While the questions and areas of interest for the surveys change each year to reflect modern ICT use, there is a core section of the survey which aims to provide stable and continued data collection for several key indicators, thereby making analyses over time possible. The module on the use of e-government was revised in 2022 and has since been collected every year. Data on electronic identification were first collected in 2023 and then again in 2025 – they are currently planned to be collected every second year.

In most EU Member States the surveys are carried out in Q2 of each year asking about activities in the preceding 12 months (in the case of questions on e-government and eID) or the preceding 3 months/Q1 of the same year.

Within this article statistics that refer to the whole adult population cover those aged 16 to 74 years. The ICT household survey covers households having at least 1 member in the relevant age group 16 to 74 years.

Context

Data from this survey facilitate the monitoring of the EU's digital targets for 2030, set by the Digital Compass for the EU's Digital Decade, revolving around 4 cardinal points: skills, digital transformation of businesses, secure and sustainable digital infrastructures, and digitalisation of public services.

Explore further

Database

- ICT usage in households and by individuals

- E-government