Exchange of information

Cooperation between the institutions consists, in particular, of the exchange of information on persons who exercise their social security rights in the course of their cross-border movement. This includes, in particular, information on periods of employment or insurance and on the benefits that those persons receive in a given Member State.

Member States’ competent institutions communicate with each other through a system of standard European forms, portable documents and structured electronic documents (SED), which are necessary to determine entitlements to benefits, report the number and type of insurance periods, the degree of any incapacity for work, the amount of benefits paid, etc. All forms are approved by the European Commission.