Impact Assessment of possible action at EU level for an open, efficient and independent EU administration

EU administrative law is highly fragmented and has never evolved into a consistent set of rules applicable across the EU administration. This fragmentation impinges on the EU’s ability to consistently uphold standards of good governance and administration, as well as to protect citizens’ rights when they interact with the administration. This impact assessment compares the option of 'doing nothing' with two alternative policy options: making the 2001 Code of Good Administrative Behaviour binding vs. adopting the regulatory framework proposed by the European Parliament in2016. The study concludes that adopting the European Parliament’s regulatory framework would be the preferred option, since it would lead to clear advantages in terms of cost savings for the public, as well as the accessibility, transparency, legal certainty and predictability as well as thelegitimacy of, and trust in, EU institutions. This option would also offer additional advantages in terms of its compatibility with Member States’ administrative law and readiness for the transition towards e-government and e-administration tools, which promises further efficiency increases in theEU administration