National scheme interoperability

The National Interoperability Framework, regulated by Royal Decree 4/2010, of 8^th January, states the set of criteria and recommendations which should be taken into account by public administrations for technological decision-making to guarantee interoperability.

The NIF is based on the main reference aspects on interoperability from the European Union, national and international standardization, similar actions in other countries, etc. The NIF is aligned with the European Interoperability Strategy and the European Interoperability Framework. Both the NIF and their interoperability technical standards, provide systematically the link with equivalent instruments at European level.

Elements of the National Interoperability Framework

The NIF introduces the following main elements:

• the specific interoperability principles: interoperability as comprehensive attribute present from services and systems conception and throughout its life cycle, the multidimensional nature of interoperability, and the approach of multilateral solutions;
• organisational interoperability: includes aspects related to the publication of services through the public administrations communication network (SARA network) with the associated conditions, the use of interoperability nodes and the maintenance of administrative information inventories (administrative bodies, registration and citizen support offices (DIR3), services and procedures (SIA));
• semantic interoperability: publication and implementation of horizontal and sectoral exchange data models, as well as those related to infrastructure, services and common tools, through the Semantic Interoperability Centre of the administration;
• technical interoperability: use of standards under the conditions provided for in the rules for ensuring independence in the election, progress adaptability and non-discrimination of citizens for their technological choice;
• the infrastructure and common services , elements of potentiation, simplification and spread of interoperability, together with facilitators of the multilateral relationship. Public administrations will link the infrastructure and services that can establish in its scope to the infrastructures and common services provided by the National State Administration to facilitate interoperability and the multilateral relationship;
• the use of the Spanish Communication Network by public administrations to communicate among themselves and to connect their networks and interoperability nodes, applying the Administration Routing Plan and the official time . The SARA network provides this Communication Network;
• the reuse part includes conditions of the applications licensing, the associated documentation and other objects of information made available by public administrations to other administrations and citizens, Centre of Technology Transfer and link between the reusable applications directories, consultation by public administrations of the available solutions for reuse, as well as publication of the applications code;
• the electronic signatures and certificates interoperability: policy of electronic signatures and certificates of the National State Administration as a tool which may be used as a reference for other public administrations, aspects related to the validation of certificates and electronic signatures, the trusted lists, the user applications, the certification services providers and the platforms for validation of certificates and electronic signature;
• the recovery and conservation of the electronic document , as stated out in the Law 39/2015, as the manifestation of interoperability over time and impacting the electronic document;
• the creation of the interoperability technical standards and interoperability tools.