- What will I need for successful electronic communication with authorities?
- Which electronic card readers will work with my eID?
- Electronic mailboxes – what they are and for what can I use them?
- How to set up notifications for new messages in the electronic mailbox?
- How to find an e-Procedure?
- Which operating systems are supported for login into the electronic mailbox and for e-Procedures?
- How to activate the electronic mailbox for delivery?
- How to create a qualified electronic signature and why should I have it?
- How to solve the problem with electronic signing?
- e-Procedures of THE TRADE REGISTER – how to create qualified electronic signature in case of submissions for Point of Single Contact?
- What application is suitable for creating electronic qualified signature if I don´t use qualified certificate on eID card?
- Are there any video guides for explanation of functions of the electronic mailbox?
- Which filename extensions have electronically signed documents (.asice, .xzep, .pdf, ...)?
- Which formats of electronic signatures must public authorities accept and create?
- How to find out if the file is electronically signed?
- Which information from document is necessary for legal acts? Validity of signing certificate of electronic signature or time stamp?
- Which e-Procedures require qualified electronic signature?
- In which case is an electronic message considered delivered?
- What can I do, if I cannot receipt electronic document and be acquainted with its content?
- How can I obtain qualified time stamp?
- Can citizens of EU member states log in to Slovak portals? Can Slovak citizen use eProcedures in foreign EU member states?
- Central Government Portal
- Electronic mailbox
- Mandatory activation of electronic mailboxes of legal entities
- Online payment via the electronic mailbox
1. What will I need for successful electronic communication with authorities?
- an identification card with electronic chip (eID card) and 6 digit personal security code (BOK),
- qualified certificates recorded on the electronic chip of eID (if you want to use your eID for qualified electronic signature (KEP), which is the electronic form of you hand written signature),
- electronic card reader and installed software for login (eID client), application package for electronic qualified signature (KEP) and driver for electronic card reader. You can find software in „Downloadsection“.
Note:
You can request BOK and qualified certificates for free in every District Directorate of the Police Force.
2. Which electronic card readers will work with my eID?
You will find the list of card readers in eID client user guide (only in Slovak).
3. Electronic mailboxes – what they are and for what can I use them?
Electronic mailbox serves for display and storage of officially delivered decisions, notifications and other types of messages from authorities to legal entities and natural persons. Delivering of the official decision into the electronic mailbox has same legal effects as delivering of decision in paper form into own hands by post. Authorities can deliver only to those electronic mailboxes that were activated for delivery.
4. How to set up notifications for new messages in the electronic mailbox?
After login into your electronic mailbox, click on Settings and then Settings of notifications.
Choose a folder, for which you want to set up notifications, and enter e-mail address and/or phone number. You may choose to use data from your profile by selecting “Send notification to contact data from your profile”. You can find more in video…
You can set up sending notification for:
- delivery of new message,
- moving of message to specific folder (wider settings),
- both of them (wider settings).
Notification can be sent through notification module (SMS or e-mail you entered in your profile) or to different e-mail address, you entered in list of e-mail addresses.
5. How to find an e-Procedure?
In e-Procedures section, you find all authorities, to whom you can send an electronic request. Enter key word in Slovak language into the field „Názov elektronickej služby“(Slovak version only) and choose from rolled up menu.
If you want to select according to specific authority, choose field „Názov inštitúcie alebo úradu“ (Slovak version only).
6. Which operating systems are supported for login into the electronic mailbox and for e-Procedures?
Login into the electronic mailbox:
- Windows XP, 7, 8, 10
- MAC OSX 10.x.x
- Linux (Mint, Ubuntu, Debian)
Submission to the Business register:
- Windows XP, 7, 8, 10
- MAC OSX 10.x.x
- Linux (Mint, Ubuntu, Debian)
Electronic Submission, other e-Procedures:
- Windows XP, 7, 8, 10
- MAC OSX 10.x.x
- Linux (Mint, Ubuntu, Debian)
*eID Client app:
- Windows XP SP3, Vista, 7, 8, 8.1, 10
- Mac OS X 10.8/10.9/10.10.2/10.10.3/10.11
- Linux (Mint 13/17 32-bit/64-bit, Ubuntu 12.04/14.04 32-bit/64-bit, Debian 7.0 32-bit/64-bit)
*Ministry of Interior of the Slovak Republic guarantees functionality of eID Client app for these versions of operating systems.
7. How to activate the electronic mailbox for delivery?
Log into the electronic mailbox through the portal slovensko.sk. Click on the button „Activate for delivery“ located in top right corner. Fulfill the application for activation and click on „Send“. Your electronic mailbox will be activated for delivery on the day, you stated in the application, but at the earliest on the 3rd working day after its delivery.
Warning:
If you entered the same date of activation as is the day of sending the application, for electronic mailbox will be activated for delivery in 3 days.
8. How to create a qualified electronic signature and why should I have it?
If you need to sign your filling, you will need qualified electronic signature. To have it, you have to apply for qualified certificates during application for eID (at the document-issuing department of the District Directorate of the Police Force) or you may do so in the app (only if you already have your personal security code BOK).
After this you have to download package with signing apps from Central Government Portal, part „Download“. For MS Windows choose D.Signer/XAdES, which is part of the package D.Suite/eIDAS (in case of operating systems MAC OS X and GNU/Linux, Java version of the app D.Signer/XAdES will be automatically downloaded and launched through the application D.Launcher, which needs to be installed).
9. How to solve the problem with electronic signing?
You can solve the problem easily by yourself by restart or update of the software or computer. Try these steps in chronological order:
1. turn on and off the application eID Client, if the problem persists,
2. connect card reader to another USB input, if the problem persists,
3. try different internet browser, if the problem persists,
4. restart your computer, if the problem persists,
5. install newest version of app D.Suite/D.Launcher for qualified electronic signature and restart your
computer, if the problem persists,
6. install newest version of app eID Client for loging and restart computer, if the problem persists,
7. update NET.Framework (if you use operation system Windows) and restart your computer.
10. e-Procedures of The Trade Register – how to create qualified electronic signature in case of submissions for Point of Single Contact?
Log into the electronic mailbox through Internet Explorer in operation system MS Windows. Sign the submission with the qualified electronic signature (KEP) through the app D.Signer/XAdES, available in section „Download“.
Attachments of the submission can be signed with apps QSign, Disig Desktop Signer or through online app http://zep.disig.sk.
e-Procedures of Point of Single Contact are in deputy of Ministry of Interior of the Slovak Republic.
11. What application is suitable for creating electronic qualified signature if I don´t use qualified certificate on eID card?
Use an app D.Signer/XAdES, which is a part of package D.Suite/eIDAS or app D.Launcher. All mentioned apps including installation guide are available in the section „Download“.
12. Are there any video guides for explanation of functions of the electronic mailbox?
All video guides are available in the footer of portal, choose „User guides“, then „Video guides“. You will find there basic situations, which can happen during work with portal or during installation of apps or programs.
13. Which filename extensions have electronically signed documents (.asice, .xzep, .pdf, ...)?
The files, which contain electronic signatures or stamps, can use different filename extentions but the extention doesn´t guarantee that the file was correctly signed.
How to figure out if the file is correctly signed with qualified electronic signature or qualified electronic stamp:
- use e-procedure of informative verification of signatures „Služba informatívneho overenia elektronického podpisu“ (in Slovak version
only).
In case of files which contain electronic signatures, those can be:
- signature containers, usually containing single electronic documents and single signatures or stamps,
- signatures, containing documents signed by them as part of them,
- signed electronic documents, containing signatures as part of them.
Signed containers created in accordance with legislative effective from the 1st of July 2016.
- signing containers ASiC-E use suffixes: .asice, .sce, .zip
- signing containers ASiC-S use suffixes: asics, .scs, .zip
Signing containers created on the basis of Slovak rules effective until the 30rd of June 2016 or after this date in case of mutual agreement of all parties:
- signing containers ZEPf usually use suffix: .zep
- signing containers and signatures XAdES_ZEP use usually suffixes: .xzep, .zepx (wrongly used suffixes are .xml or.zep)
Electronic documents containing signatures as part of them:
- PDF files containing signature PAdES use suffix: .pdf
- XML files containing signature XAdES enveloped use suffix: .xml (or other), these signatures are currently not supported by Central Electronic Filling office)
Electronic signature containing documents electronically signed by them as part of them:
(These signatures are currently not supported by Central Electronic Filling office)
- signatures CAdES (enveloping) using suffix: .p7m
- signatures XAdES (enveloping) using suffix: .xml
Electronic signatures divided from signed electronic documents:
(These signatures are currently not supported by Central Electronic Filling office as separate ones,
they have to be situated in signature container).
- signatures CAdES "detached" using suffix: .p7s
- signatures XAdES "detached" using suffix: .xml
Time stamps separated from electronic documents on which they apply:
Electronic documents signed or sealed in signing containers or in electronic signatures, can have different formats, for example .pdf, .txt, .png. Public authorities are obliged to receive and create formats of electronic documents prescribed in Decree no. 55/2014 Coll. on Standards for Information Systems of Public Administration (only in Slovak).
Verification of electronic signatures and stamps XAdES enveloping (.xml), XAdES enveloped (.xml), CAdES enveloping (.p7m) and separate time stamps of documents (.tst) are not currently supported on the Central Government Portal.
For these formats use different e-Procedure of signature verification. Signatures "detached" separated from signed documents (.m7s, .xml) can be processed and verified only in signing container.
You can find more about supported formats of signatures on the Central Government Portal in documentation of functionality of Central Electronic Filling office (only in Slovak).
14. Which formats of electronic signatures must public authorities accept and create?
Mandatory formats of qualified electronic signatures and stamps and mandatory formats of signature containers are stated in a separate document of National Security Authority (NBÚ), which comes from a Regulation (EU) No 910/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council and from Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2015/1506. These are formats XAdES, CAdES, PAdES and ASiC, whose usual extensions are stated in previous question.
Before the entry into force of this legislation, there were aso formats XAdES_ZEP (.xzep, .zepx) and ZEPf (.zep), whose were informatively stated also in standards of National Security Authority (NBÚ), effective until 30. 6. 2016.
The public authorities are mandatory to accept a signature CAdES (or XAdES) from the format ZEPf (.zep) in accordance to standpoint of NBÚ (only in Slovak). This signature is in compliance with an attachment of COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING DECISION (EU) 2015/1506 and can be validated as a separate signature of the file .eml (containing base64 coding files) or be inserted in ASiC and be validated as ASiC in accordance to REGULATION (EU) No 910/2014 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL.
- Format XAdES_ZEP (.xzep, .zepx) and containers ZEPf (.zep) cannot be created in accordance with legislation. Creating
signatures or stamps, whose are not in accordance to COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING DECISION (EU) 2015/1506 can be fined
in accordance to Slovak legislation.
Within the meaning of the law no. 95/2019 Coll. on information technology in public administration and on amendments to certain laws (only in Slovak) a penalty may be imposed for breaching the standards for creating signing containers prescribed in Decree no. 78/2020 Coll. on standards for public administration information technologies (only in Slovak).
15. How to find out if the file is electronically signed?
A file signed by qualified electronic signature or provided with qualified electronic stamp does not have to include hand written signature or stamp.
Use an app or e-Procedure intended for processing and verification of electronic signatures.
The function of informative verification of signatures is available for documents in electronic messages within the functions of electronic mailboxes. You can also use an e-Procedure for informative verification of signatures.
The Central Government Portal supports informative verification of signatures of electronic documents only in some formats (only in Slovak). For the other formats of files, we kindly recommend to use other free certified tools designed for signature verification.
How can I obtain a binding validation of qualified electronic signature?
The Central Government Portal uses only informative verification of signatures and stamps as well as other open provided e-Procedures. The fact that the result of signature verification is just "informative" does not mean that the result is unreliable or untrustworthy. The procedure does not have statute of qualified trustworthy procedure in the meaning of an article 33 and 40 of REGULATION (EU) No 910/2014 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 23 July 2014 on electronic identification and trust services for electronic transactions in the internal market and repealing Directive 1999/93/EC. Within the meaning of the said legislation there is no duty of providing of qualified procedure of validation, that is why the Central Government Portal does not need to use it. This kind of e-Procedure is now in the state of preparation.
You can find the list of e-Procedures providers with the statute of qualified procedure in trustworthy lists published by European Commission (marked as "Qualified validation service...").
16. Which information from document is necessary for legal acts? Validity of signing certificate of electronic signature or time stamp?
Slovak legislation (305/2013 Coll. on e-Government, § 23 ods. 1 (only in Slovak)) states rules for implementation of public authority for using of time stamp and valid signature without time stamp. It is necessary to distinguish whether it is a requirement of a legal act:
- signature (for which it is not required official certificate in paper form, so it is not necessary to contain time stamp in electronic form during validation of signature certification)
- or an officially certified signature, where time stamp is included into authorization (it is recommended to add time stamp also with the signature, if it isnecessary to prove time when the authorization was made, more information…).
For validity of qualified time stamps, it is important the status "granted", stated in trustworthy list with specific procedure for time stamps.
Can electronic mailbox secure validity of signatures throughout the storage time of message in the mailbox?
Electronic mailbox does not secure long time validity of authorized means (signatures/stamps/time stamps) in electronic messages saved in electronic mailbox.
If valid signatures/stamps contain qualified time stamp added at the time of validity of signing certificate, it will be possible to verify them as valid at the time when the certificate of time stamp is published in the trustworthy list with the status „Granted". Qualified time stamp can secure long-lasting validity (for example more than 10 years). Time of validity is not determined in advance and it is necessary to determine on the basis of analysis of risks. You can find more info in frequently asked questions on vicepremier.gov.sk (in Slovak only).
If the signature contains qualified time stamp added at the time of validity of signture/stamp, it can reach longer time as is the limit for free storarage of documents in the Module of long term storage "Modul dlhodobého uchovávania".
17. Which e-Procedures require qualified electronic signature?
You can find list (dataset) of e-Procedures, which require qualified electronic signature on https://data.gov.sk/en/.
18. In which case is an electronic message considered delivered?
According to the Act No. 305/2013 Coll. on e-Government (only in Slovak), electronic message is considered delivered:
- by saving of electronic message (the moment from when an electronic message objectively is available for recipient in his/hers electronic mailbox) – if the addressee is public authority,
- a day immediately following after saving of electronic message- if the addressee is not public authority and it is not delivered into own hands,
- a day, hour, minute and second stated in electronic receipt or by vain expiration of storage period, according to which scenario will occur sooner – even in the case of delivering into own hands.
19. What can I do, if I cannot receipt electronic document and be acquainted with its content?
If you cannot receipt delivered electronic documents because of outer reasons (for example hospitalization) and be acquainted eith their content, you can use a function "inefficiency of electronic delivery". You can find more in related user guide (only in Slovak).
20. How can I obtain qualified time stamp?
During the process of generation of qualified electronic signature through the Central Government Portal in a message designer (after confirmation of successful signing in the app D.Signer/XAdES), the time stamp will be added automatically to the signature.
If a user attach already signed electronic document (which does not contain time stamp in signature to a submission, the portal will not attach is’t qualified time stamp to this kind of submission. If hand-made signature is not enough for authorization of the document and the officially certified signature is required and the user dispose with already signed document without qualified time stamp, the user can obtain a qualified time stamp for signature by creating of signature on the portal or use other application from other providers.
21. Can citizens of EU member states log in to Slovak portals? Can Slovak citizen use eProcedures in foreign EU member states?
You can log in to Slovak portals via eIDAS Node. Login is designed for foreign natural persons, who own foreign mean of identification issued in some of EU member state. More information…
Owners of Slovak eID cards with an electronic chip or Slovak proof of residence of foreigner with an electronic chip can already use e-Procedures of public sector on the portal of European Commission, on the portal for support of European citizenship initiatives and the portals of the Czech Republic, Belgium, Portugal, Spain and Italy. All EU member states have a duty to make their e-Procedures available for Slovak citizens and foreigners with residence in the Slovak Republic.
You can find more about this topic in FAQ (electronic identification – eIDAS (only in Slovak)…
22. Central Government Portal
Frequently asked questions and answers about Central Government Portal
23. Electronic mailbox
Additional frequently asked questions and answers about Electronic mailbox
24. Mandatory activation of electronic mailboxes of legal entities
Frequently asked questions and answers about Mandatory activation of the electronic mailbox for delivery
25. Online payment via the electronic mailbox
Frequently asked questions and answers about Online payment via the electronic mailbox
Last modified: 20. 9. 2021
Publication date: 12. 2. 2019