The European Social Security Pass (ESSPASS) - A Digital Enforcement Tool for Labour Rights?

AT A GLANCE Requested by the EMPL Committee Study in Focus The European Social Security Pass (ESSPASS) Check out the original full study by scanning this QR code A Digital Enforcement Tool for Labour Rights? The original full study1 reviews the potential of the European Social Security Pass (ESSPASS) as a tool for the enforcement of labour and social security rights. It first explains the initiative's background, discussing how the current conceptualisation of ESSPASS links with other EU digitalisation initiatives. Secondly it reviews the existing legal framework of social security coordination and its challenges. Finally, the study considers a range of recommendations for the potential scope, content and format of ESSPASS, recommending its expansion to include labour law and national declarations of posting, and reflecting on the issue of data protection. Background Following years of discussion on solutions to better enforce EU social security coordination, including an abandoned idea of a European Social Security Number (ESSN), the Commission announced that it would explore the possibility of launching a European social security pass (ESSPASS) - this initiative was presented in a September 2023 Communication2. The ESSPASS features a digital wallet for smartphone use, in which social security credentials (i.e. the Portable Document "A1" (PDA1) for posted workers and European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) for cross-border health care) are stored by mobile...