In Estonia, 99% of public services are available online 24 hours a day. E-services are only impossible for divorces  – you still need to leave the house for this.

Thanks to a safe, convenient, and flexible digital ecosystem, Estonia has reached an unprecedented level of transparency in governance and built broad trust in its digital society. As a result, Estonia saves over 1400 years of working time annually and has become a hassle-free environment for business and entrepreneurship.

e-Governance is a strategic choice for Estonia that aims to improve the competitiveness of the country and increase the well-being of its people. Our aim is to keep the government working seamlessly 24/7. This is supported by digital identity, secure data exchange, and high-quality databases. E-Governance consists of transparent and efficient use of ICT in state administration (e-Administration), user-friendly public services provision online (e-Services and active involvement of citizens in decision-making processes(e-Participation). The development of the Estonian e-Governance ecosystem has been supported by strategic vision,trust of citizens and cooperation with the ICT sector. Personal data protection is the cornerstone of building trust towards e-Government. Citizens have the right to know who is using their personal data. Enforcement of ‘once-only’ principle means that citizens only have to submit their data once to the government to be used and re-used. Estonia is striving for provision of proactive and invisible services by relaying on the efficient use of data which the state already has. Proactive service delivery means that the government starts service provision without waiting requests from citizens.