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Welcome to the webpage for the Internal Market Information (IMI) system, your 'one stop shop' for all IMI related information. This page has been developed to ensure that every resource that will assist authorities to register, use and utilise the system to its full potential is easily accessible.
The Internal Market Information (IMI) System is an internet based, secure messaging system developed by the European Commission. Under Article 29 of the Service Directive, Member States are obliged to provide mutual assistance to each other if requested and this must be achieved through electronic means. The IMI system has been developed to facilitate such assistance as well as promoting confidence and trust across all Member States through increased communication and overcoming existing barriers such as administrative and working cultures, different languages and a lack of clearly identified partners. Its principle aim therefore, is to reduce the administrative burdens on stakeholders involved and to increase efficiency and effectiveness in cooperation between Member States.
The IMI system allows competent authorities (including local authorities) within the EU to be easily identified and information requests and responses to be submitted in a clear, efficient and secure environment. It is an electronic tool enabling more effective day-to-day cooperation. Key to this is an accurate translation service, including pre-translated question sets, that facilitate communications between relevant authorities and allows for appropriate regulation of service providers across the EU.
The IMI pilot stage for the Service Directive is now up and running. At present, there are over 100 UK authorities registered and eligible to use the system with this number increasing regularly. These authorities are now in a position to send and receive test cases. Several requests have already been processed, which allows us to provide specific feedback to the European Commission on possible areas of improvement.
We would encourage all competent authorities who are in scope of the Services Directive, which includes all local authorities, to register for the pilot phase and therefore allow sufficient time to make full use of the system before it goes live.
"For a system that has to span the EU, I found the system reasonably intuitive and easy to follow when requesting information from other authorities. In principle, it's a simple process, with the fixed template question framework being easy to use. The translation service reduces the potential of language issues and this should save time and expense."
- Eddie Clark, Environment Agency
"Don’t be put off by the comprehensive question sets – they help to make sure you are asking what you think you’re asking!"
- Graham Simms, Wychavon District Council
Alongside the benefits of using the pilot stage mentioned above, we would like to see all registered authorities take this opportunity to send a request to an authority in another Member State. Now is the ideal opportunity to use the system and actually examine how the IMI will directly affect your authority.
We have suggested that authorities 'invent' a service provider, possibly using the type of request for information that your authority has dealt with in the past. Therefore, any such use of the system will be in an area that is directly relevant to your authority. For example, it could involve the verification of a certificate or existing licence or even checking the history of a service provider who is applying for a license under the jurisdiction of your authority. The exact details of the request are up to the individual authority though please remember that this is the pilot stage and whilst we would like to keep it as close to the real event as possible, requests do not have to be exact.
Use of the system really is the best way in which potential problems and areas of concern can be raised and dealt with so we are strongly recommending the pilot phase to ALL authorities.
Registration to use the IMI system is a really simple process. Send an email to sdimi@bis.gsi.gov.uk saying you wish to register. You will receive a very quick form to fill in, after which you will be granted access and can use the system.
In order to ensure that all authorities are suitably prepared and trained for use of the IMI system, BIS alongside the European Commission have prepared some training materials. These are easy to use and take you through the whole process of registration to sending and receiving a request as well as more detailed aspects of the IMI such a partial replies and forwarding a request. We welcome any feedback that you have on these training packages especially areas where you believe they could be improved.
To access the Commission's training materials please click here
Attached below are:
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(1287KB)In order to ensure that service providers who are operating in more than one EEA state are not causing either serious damage to the environment or a danger to public health or safety an ‘alert mechanism’ facility is being built into the Internal Market Information (IMI) system.
The European Commission expects to have this alert mechanism ready for use by the end of the year. This will enable competent and local authorities who have become aware of a service provider undertaking such dangerous activity, to immediately inform the competent authorities in other EEA states where it is known that the service provider operates. It will enable the competent authorities of relevant EEA states to react quickly, to closely supervise the service provider in question and if required, take necessary preventative action in compliance with the Directive.
Given that alerts should only be sent where there is evidence of a business causing serious risk to the environment or a danger to public health and safety, not all competent authorities will ever need to trigger an alert. All other breaches of regulations will be dealt with using the normal channels. We do not think that there will be many cases which will require an alert to be sent. We expect that the Health and Safety Executive and the Environment Agency (along with the equivalent bodies in the devolved administrations) may occasionally need to send an alert, but local authorities may also have to use the alert mechanism and will have to know how it works. Article 32 of the Services Directive and Regulation 42 of the Provision of Services Regulations contain the relevant legal obligations.
All alerts have to be sent via the IMI National Liaison Point (NLP) in BIS, who will forward it to other EEA states on behalf of the competent authority who has generated the alert. However, it is up to the competent authority to ensure the details sent are accurate, and to update the alert information on the IMI system when necessary. The NLP’s role is limited to sending the alert on behalf of the requesting authority.
Alerts have to be justified following a series of pre-defined checks, and an alert cannot be sent unless all of these criteria are met:
The Commission is still building the alert mechanism, and will publish some detailed guidance on the alert criteria and the circumstances for sending an alert by the end of the year. To ensure an alert case is valid, an alert form will also be published, which must be filled and sent to the NLP. The NLP will check all the fields have been completed and then forward the alert.
Further details and guidance will be circulated once the alert mechanism has been finalised. In the meantime, please contact sdimi@bis.gsi.gov.uk should you have any queries.
We have set up a forum on the Community of Practice website to enable local authorities to share information, best practice and knowledge development relating to the Services Directive in a secure environment. Please feel free to start a forum debate or ask a question to the forum.
To register please visit the Communities of Practice website and follow the registration instructions. After registration, search for 'EU Service Directive' not the 'Champion Group' to see and interact with our online community. If there are any problems please feel free to contact us at sdimi@bis.gsi.gov.uk.
We will also be holding an online live web chat on the forum, where all registered users can chat and ask questions to members of the Services Directive team. This will provide a unique opportunity to ask any question you have about the IMI system whilst sharing information with fellow users. We will let you know once a time and date for this has been agreed.
To help Member States comply with data protection rules, the European Commission have issued a recommendation on the exchange of data via the IMI system (a copy can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/imi-net/docs/recommendation_2009_C2041_en.pdf ). Much of this recommendation outlines the parameters for using IMI and covers good practice which is already observed in the UK. However, there are a couple of actions which competent authorities, including local authorities, need to consider:
The Commission recommend that competent authorities tell service providers that their personal data may be exchanged with other authorities via IMI and advise them of their rights of access. Although it is up to each competent authority to decide how to convey this information, a simple solution would be to include something in a privacy notice.
A privacy notice is a statement that individuals are given when information is collected about them. Most, if not all, authorities already publish a privacy notice on their website. We therefore recommend authorities add some text to their existing notices to inform service providers about the exchange of information via IMI.
It is up to each authority to decide what to include in their privacy notices, but there are some important points you should reflect:
Your privacy policy should already include information about rights of access and contact details. Should it not, or you do not currently have a privacy policy, you might find it useful to consult the “Privacy notices code of practice” published by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), which gives further guidance on what a good privacy policy should include. This can be found at:
All UK bodies that process personal data should already be registered with the ICO. As exchanging information via IMI will be a new use of personal data for most competent authorities, you should amend your notification entry with the ICO to reflect this. Please see their website for simple instructions on how to do this:
http://www.ico.gov.uk/what_we_cover/data_protection/notification/keeping_up_to_date.aspx
Elsewhere on our website we have comprehensive information for local authorities and competent authorities. Each local authority and competent authority should now have a primary liaison point (PLP) who should be the main liaison point with BIS and be coordinating implementation within their organisation: if you work in either a local authority or any other competent authority, please make sure you know who your PLP is and be in regular contact with them. If you do not know your PLP please contact BIS at servicesdirective@bis.gsi.gov.uk
The European Commission IMI website is a good source of further information such as data protection issues, training materials and history of the Services Directive.
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/imi-net/index_en.html
The Commission have also published a brochure setting out the benefits of the IMI system:
http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/imi-net/docs/imi_brochure_en.pdf
