The ‘once-only’ principle (OOP) in the context of the public sector means that citizens and businesses supply data only once to a public administration. The role of public administrations is to internally share these data also across borders so that no additional burden falls on citizens and businesses. This paper presents what steps are taken to implement the OOP both on the European and national level. The national approach in European countries towards implementing the OOP is analysed and compared in terms of legislation, strategies and infrastructure. The most important benefits of the OOP are described as well. One of the most important initiatives in Europe to explore and demonstrate the OOP in practice is the TOOP project. The paper presents how TOOP technical solution is practically implemented within three pilot areas: general business mobility, e-procurement, maritime domain.

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