Sofia, 27th May 2020 - For the first time 52 of the municipalities in Bulgaria, which are nearly 20% of all in the country, have started to provide their services to individuals and businesses using remote e-identification and e-signatures directly through smartphones – the fastest and easiest way to deliver administrative services, saving time and money.
This is possible after the integration of Evrotrust Technologies, providing technology and mobile application for e-identification, e-signature and registered email through digital channel, delivering immediately e-documents that is unique in its functionalities, in the portal for electronic administrative services - auslugi.com, including 52 municipalities in Bulgaria.
Municipalities that have integrated Evrotrust
Burgas is the first Bulgarian municipality that has integrated Evrotrust. The other municipalities are Bansko, Kozloduy, Sandanski, Razgrad, Vratsa, Troyan, Kardzhali, Karlovo, Sevlievo, etc. (see full list here). Pernik Regional Administration is one of the institutions that has already provided e-services with Evrotrust.
Evrotrust integration gives an opportunity to every individual and an enterprise (representative or authorized person of a company) to request e-service in any of these municipalities, identifying themselves remotely with Evrotrust and signing documents with a qualified electronic signature (QES) of Evrotrust. "This is a big step forward in the digital transformation of our country. Evrotrust is a powerful tool that will help in the process of digitalisation of public administration services, giving huge benefits and advantages for all citizens and businesses. We hope our qualified trust services to be gradually integrated by all Bulgarian institutions", said Prof. Dr. George Dimitrov, board member of Evrotrust.
Evrotrust’s e-signature has the same legal value as the paper signature. The app is fully compliant with all information security standards and requirements. Evrotrust uses advanced 3D machine-learning technology for automated face recognition and ID document processing. Evrotrust’s mobile application is free of charge and could be downloaded from Google Play or App Store on each smart device - a phone or a tablet with iOS and Android operating system. The first five e-signatures through the app are free of charge. Evrotrust is now integrated by large banks, insurance companies, pension funds and telecoms.
The rise of Evrotrust
More than 10 000 new users registered in the mobile application of Evrotrust just in the past week. The total number of the users of the app exceeds 70 000. The company also reported an increase in its users' e-signatures. „We registered a 5-fold increase in the number of registrations and downloads of our mobile application during the state of emergency, and a 10-fold increase in the number of e-signatures through our app. It was an extremely busy and important period for us, because at that very moment remote e-identification and e-signatures enabled people to protect their health and life, and on the other hand allowed them to continue to develop their business as usual, to receive services from suppliers and the state”, said Prof. Dr. George Dimitrov, Member of the Board of Directors of Evrotrust.
How businesses benefit from Evrotrust with reference to the government-backed COVID-19-related financial schemes - 3/10 and 30/100
Evrotrust can be used by Bulgarian businesses when they apply for grants under the 3/10 scheme (support for small and micro enterprises) and under the 30/100 scheme (support for medium enterprises) provided by the government in an attempt to avoid a severe economic downturn as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The funding is provided by Innovation and Competitiveness Operational Programme .
Every Bulgarian small enterprise independently of the industry (exception is agriculture) can apply for a grant under the 3/10 scheme. The deadline is 15 June, 2020. The candidates should meet the following requirements: 20% decrease in turnover in April 2020 compared to the average monthly turnover in 2019; to be registered and operating before 1 July, 2019; minimum 30 000 BGN turnover for the previous year and up to 50 employees. If enterprises fulfill the conditions aforementioned, they can obtain a grant at the amount of 3000 BGN to 10 000 BGN (but not more than 10% of 2019 turnover) through “Support for Micro and Small Enterprises procedure to overcome the economic impact of COVID-19 pandemic”. Businesses can apply for a grant online through the Information system for management and monitoring of EU funds in Bulgaria 2020 (EUMIS2020). Аll forms can be signed with qualified Evrotrust e-signatures.
Candidates for grants under the 30/100 scheme should meet the following requirements: 20% decrease in the turnover in any of the months after 1 February, 2020, up to the month before application is submitted, compared to average monthly turnover in 2019; to be registered as to 31 December, 2018; turnover in 2019 between BGN 3 million and BGN 50 million. If enterprises fulfill the conditions aforementioned, they can obtain a grant at the amount of 30 000 BGN to 100 000 BGN ( but not more than 1% from 2019 turnover). Businesses can apply for a grant online through the Information system for management and monitoring of EU funds in Bulgaria 2020 (EUMIS2020). Аll forms can be signed with qualified Evrotrust e-signatures. The scheme opening date will be announced soon.
In March, Evrotrust became part of the State e-Government Agency's initiative to support local businesses and individuals during the national state of emergency, starting to provide free qualified electronic signatures (QES) which can be used to submit electronically any request for a service provided by government bodies and public institutions through the single portal egov.bg. With the e-signature of Evrotrust and through egov.bg citizens can request electronic services from the municipalities in Bulgaria, a significant part of which are already integrated or are in the process of integration with the State e-Government Agency. Also, during the state of emergency, Evrotrust provided free of charge e-signatures to Bulgarian citizens and SMEs.
