Undeclared work in an enlarged union

In July 2004, the European Commission issued a new report on the extent of undeclared work around the EU. It looks at the incidence in each Member State, including the 10 new Member States that joined in May 2004, and examines the reasons behind the growth in undeclared work.

The issue of ‘undeclared work’ has been receiving increasing attention as part of the European employment strategy, and since 2003 the EU employment guidelines have included a specific guideline entitled ’transform undeclared work into regular employment’. This provides that Member States should develop and implement broad actions and measures to eliminate undeclared work, which combine simplification of the business environment, removing disincentives and providing appropriate incentives in the tax and benefits system, improved law enforcement and the application of sanctions. They should undertake the necessary efforts at national and EU level to measure the extent of the problem and progress achieved at national level.

In order to inform the debate and help Member States tackle the problem, on 2 July 2004, the European Commission published a report it had commissioned on Undeclared work in an enlarged Union. The report looks at the extent of the phenomenon around the EU, including in the 10 new Member States.