1.
Páraig Hennessy
Integrated Licensing Application System

2.
Action Plan for Jobs
• The Action Plan for Jobs (APJ) is an important initiative which was
launched in February 2012 by the Government of Ireland.
• It is a comprehensive and dedicated Action Plan for Jobs strategy to help
reach our primary objective: getting Ireland back to work.
• To create the environment where the number of people at work will
increase by 100,000, from 1.85 million to 1.95 million, by 2016, and reach
2.1 million people by 2020.
• To become the best small country in which to do business.
• To get back to a top-5 ranking in international competitiveness
• To build world-class clusters in key sectors of opportunity
• To build up the export market share of Irish companies

3.
Review and Audit of Licences Study
• Reviewed 159 licences and processes for key sectors of the economy
– Manufacturing
– Food and Drink
– Retail
– Hospitality and Leisure
– Waste Management
– Road Haulage
– Construction
• 68 licences were identified as being more significant
– Impact on a large number of enterprises, apply across a number of sectors or entail
high licensing and / or compliance costs

4.
Key Findings of Study
• Licensing is recognised as essential by business but the burden of many licences is
unnecessarily high
– Licence Fees; Application and Renewal Process; Compliance Time; Renewal Frequency
• Significance of costs varies from sector to sector, from licence to licence and in some
instances from business to business
– Flat fee structure, turnover structure, risk-based fee structure
• In certain sectors, such as retail and hospitality and in the case of SMEs the multiplicity of
licences imposes a significant time burden on management / owners
• Over 230,000 individual licensing or mandatory registrations were transacted in 2011

5.
Action Plan for Jobs 2013
Disruptive Reform
– An Integrated Licensing Application System be delivered for the
Retail sector in the first instance;
– 40 Licensing Authorities
– 29 Core Licences

6.
Project Parameters
• No additional cost to the business user (licensee)
• Use of the service by Licensing Authorities would not be
mandatory
• Innovative Public Procurement

7.
Functional Specification
– A single online portal for the application, renewal and payment of licences
– A consolidated application mechanism
– A consolidated payment mechanism
– An attractive pricing model that does not incur a cost to the Contracting Authority or
the licensee,
» ensure the broadest take-up by public licensing authorities
– Provision of all the information that is required for the applications
– Allow the electronic upload of supporting documentation
– Ease of renewals
– System flexibility to allow additional licences to be included as the need arises
– Certain level of public access

8.
On-Line Business Licensing System (OBLS) - Singapore
https://licences.business.gov.sg/SHINE/sop/WebPageHandl
er?p=OASIS&pn=SelectLicences&ss=Start

9.
Example from Singapore - OBLS

10.
OBLS: New Application

11.
Example from OBLS – Food Store Licence

12.
Example from OBLS – Food Store Licence

13.
Examples of Licences to be included

14.
Procurement Process
• Request for Tender for a Single Vendor Framework Agreement
– Issued in the OJEU on 25th February 2014 with a closing date 17th April 2014
• Competition was successful – response from the market
• Agreed to award the tender and award the contract
• Contract conclusions – late October 2014
• Expected delivery of Service by end of 2014 to Licensing Authorities

15.
Benefits of Integrated Licensing Application Service

16.
Benefits to Business
• One-stop shop offering time savings to businesses
• Simpler application and renewal process
• Allows public sector and private sector licence
applications
• Help businesses keep track of licence-related transactions
• Help businesses meet their regulatory obligations

17.
Benefits to Public Sector
• Part of the eGovernment agenda
• Medium Term Objectives
– Help provide productivity and efficiency gains by streamlining
the licence application process
– Potential for more integrated inspections and compliance
systems
– Potential for better application of risk-based enforcement

18.
Benefits to the Economy at large
• Ease of doing business
• Helping businesses to grow
• Increasing competitiveness
• Ireland as the best small country to do business in by 2016

19.
We will be happy to:
• Discuss the Irish experience with other Member States
• Share our key learnings
-Functionality
-Procurement process
-Roll-out of the Integrated Licensing Application
Service
• At a meeting of the SME Envoys in late 2015/early 2016

20.
Contact Details Interim:
Michelle Kearney, Department of Jobs Enterprise and
Innovation
Phone 0035316312872
Email: michelle.kearney@djei.ie
Karen Hynes, Department of Jobs, Enterprise and
Innovation
Phone 0035316312870
Email: karen.hynes@djei.ie

21.
Thank You/Go raibh maith agat
• Thank You/ Go raibh maith agat
Paraig Hennessy
Head of Unit
State Aid & Access to Finance Unit
Dept of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation
Ph: 01 6312486
Email: paraig.hennessy@djei.ie