On October 21, 2025, the European Commission published its work program for 2026,1 which announces a proposal for changes in several areas related to worker mobility.
Proposed changes include strengthening the mandate of the European Labour Authority (ELA), which currently supports European Union (EU) member states in various aspects of enforcing legislation for posted workers and social security. For example, this includes concerted and coordinated labor inspections across EU borders.2
Other changes include digitalization, modernization, and simplification of the administrative compliance processes in the areas of posted workers, social security, and labor mobility in general.
The proposed strengthening of the ELA’s mandate – although its full extent remains unclear – should be considered alongside ongoing initiatives such as the central digital declaration for posted workers (also known as the ‘e-declaration’).3 It is proposed that the ELA gain access to posting data and that data be used for purposes beyond statistics.
Businesses and mobile workers should closely monitor the upcoming legislative changes, as well as changes to the administration of compliance with social security and posting of workers to and within the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland.
WHY THIS MATTERS
Businesses should assess these developments in the context of their compliance risk profile. Increased digitalization in social security and posting of workers, combined with closer cooperation between member states and different authorities (such as labor inspectorates, tax and immigration authorities), and enhanced data exchange, could have ramifications for compliance but also for the data provided for applications for A1 certificates and prior notifications of posting.
Fair Mobility Package
In its 2026 work program, the Commission proposes the so-called ‘Fair Mobility Package’,4 which would include proposals in the following areas:
- European Social Security Pass: This is part of the Commission’s effort to digitize processes and procedures in the area of social security. The Social Security Pass will make it easier for individuals and businesses to provide proof of their social security coverage. The Pass is intended to include a digital A1 certificate and the European Health Insurance Card5 and will likely be integrated into the EU Digital Identity Wallet.6
- The European Labour Authority (ELA): Currently, the ELA supports member states by coordinating and organizing joint labor inspections, providing training for labor inspectors, facilitating mediation between member states in cases concerning labor mobility and social security, and launching information campaigns, to mention a few of its core activities.7 In its current mandate, the ELA does not have a mandate to enforce legislation on posting of workers and social security. That is the responsibility of each EU member state.
The proposal to enhance the ELA’s mandate will include granting access to posting data for use in risk assessments and the enforcement of rules for posted workers and social security. It will particularly focus on posted non-EEA and Swiss nationals (third-country nationals) and the support the ELA can provide to member states in that regard.
- Skills Portability Initiatives: This initiative intends to improve the recognition of skills and qualifications for both regulated and unregulated professions. It will focus on recognizing qualifications obtained in non-EU countries, as the current lack of a uniform approach to recognizing skills from third countries has been identified as a barrier for mobility of people within the European Union.8
Central Declaration for Posted Workers/E-declaration
On 10 September 2025, the European Parliament published a report on the proposal for a central declaration on posting, which, if adopted, would be voluntary for member states to join.9
In the report, the Parliament proposed several additions to the central declaration including:
- A mandatory notification on posting for self-employed workers;
- A mandatory declaration for postings from non-EU countries (third countries);
- The inclusion of information beyond the scope of labor law, such as social security details;
- Granting the ELA access to the posting data.
Furthermore, the Parliament’s proposal includes establishing a clear process for future amendments to the central declaration and limiting data retention to 36 months. Finally, it has been suggested to make the central declaration tool be configurable to connect with the administrative systems in the member states.
KPMG INSIGHTS
The European Commission aims to modernize and continue to digitize compliance within labor mobility and social security. Informally, KPMG has learned that member states are generally enthusiastic and supportive of the e-declaration. The proposed extended scope of data required for the e-declaration and the configurability to national systems, as proposed by the European Parliament, seem to be encouraging more member states to consider joining the central e-declaration for posting.
If the legislation for the e-declaration is adopted (as expected, perhaps even this year), the e-declaration could become operational by the end of 2026. A similar timeline could apply to the European Social Security Pass.
On the social security front, the revision of the social security regulation has been pending since 2016 due to a blocking minority.10 Informally, KPMG has learned that an agreement on the revised text could be reached in the first half of 2026.
One thing is clear: the legislative, administrative, and compliance landscape for posted workers and social security in the EU is set to change significantly in the next one to two years.
KPMG can assist with compliance reviews, process optimization, and support in the execution of compliance with A1 certificates, as well as notifications about posting and working conditions for posted workers.
FOOTNOTES:
1 European Commission, COM(2025) 87o Final, “Commission work programme 2026, Europe’s Independence Moment,” 21 October 2025.
2 Ibid., Annexes 1 to 5, Annex I, point 25.
3 European Parliament, “Report on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the Public interface connected to the Internal Market Information System for the declaration of posting of workers and amending Regulation (EU) No 1024/2012,” Amendments 27, 28, 61, 10 September 2025.
4 See footnote 2.
5 European Commission, Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, “European Social Security Pass.”
6 European Commission, EU Digital Identity Wallet, “A digital ID and personal digital wallet for EU citizens, residents and businesses.”
7 European Labour Authority website.
8 European Commission, “Equipping people for a competitive Europe: The Union of Skills,” 20 June 2025.
9 See footnote 3.
10 European Parliament, Legislative train Schedule, “Revision of Regulation on social security coordination,” 20 September 2025.
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