Malta Enterprise is participating in a European pilot project through which all the procedures to be followed by businesses setting up in another EU country, and all other information they require, is readily available online, thereby facilitating start-up and touchdown services as well as increasing the transparency for businesses and particularly SMEs.
The pilot project, entitled Simple Procedures Online for Cross-border Services (SPOCS), seeks to improve the competitiveness of European businesses by reducing the legal and administrative barriers they have to overcome when setting up in another member state.
With a focus on improving efficiency, electronic procedures and information provided under the pilot project are inter-operable across borders, and amongst other things list the corresponding documents businesses need when these differ between member states.
Having been launched in May 2009, when it comprised 13 partners from seven EU member states, the pilot project is now being enlarged – pending some final contractual arrangements – to include 29 partners from 16 participating countries, thereby increasing not only the geographical coverage of the project but also its visibility and sustainability.
The SPOCS project is expected to pave the way for the next generation of Points of Single Contact (PSC) for business across Europe, as required by the Services Directive, and indeed builds on the solutions developed in the various member states as they implement the directive.
The Services Directive aims at facilitating the exercise of freedom of establishment for service providers and the free movement of services while maintaining a high quality of services, thereby releasing the untapped growth potential of services markets in Europe.
Under the Directive, PSCs have been set up in each member state to act as a single contact point from which SMEs can easily obtain information, submit applications and obtain a response without having to deal with a multitude of authorities at various levels.
As from 2010, Malta Enterprise – which is representing Malta in the SPOCS pilot project – has been designated as the PSC for Malta. In addition, Malta Enterprise has signed 20 service level agreements with various government departments and agencies to give its clients a more efficient and professional service.
Malta Enterprise is currently preparing to sign a further three service level agreements that will enable it to provide most of the services required by businesses in one place, effectively setting up the one-stop-shop which will be located at the Corporation’s new premises in Gwardamangia later this year.