Working Group Workshop – Policy & Legal Priorities for OPC-s and the Self-Employed

From Platform Work to the Definition of Self-Employment
EU policy link: Platform Work Directive implementation; employment-status classification; possible spill-over effects on genuine self-employment.
Expert input: Maria Sanchez Rodriguez, Public Affairs Manager, Seldia
Focus: The distinction between platform work, false self-employment and genuine entrepreneurial independence, and the risk that platform-work regulation influences broader definitions of self-employment.

Making the Single Market Work for Solo Entrepreneurs and Mobile Business Structures
EU policy link: Single Market Strategy 2025; services barriers; professional qualifications; temporary cross-border service provision; legal certainty; administrative simplification; EU Inc.; 28th Regime as one practical example.
Expert input: Peter Dohr, Senior Expert for Single Market, Austrian Chamber of Commerce.
Focus: Practical barriers faced by self-employed professionals, one-person companies and mobile entrepreneurs when operating across borders. This includes recognition of qualifications, administrative procedures, temporary cross-border service provision, legal certainty, fragmented compliance requirements and the question of whether simplified EU-level instruments such as EU Inc. or a 28th Regime could help reduce friction for mobile business structures.

OPCs importance for boosting internationalisation of SMEs and their contribution for the economic security
EU policy link: SME competitiveness; simplification agenda; better regulation; SME Test; economic resilience.
Expert input: Prof. Milena Angelova, Member of the EESC, SME Envoy of Bulgaria.
Focus: The institutional SME perspective on how EU rules can become simpler, more workable and more predictable for small businesses. Administrative burden reduction, better regulation, SME competitiveness and the practical implementation of EU policy from the perspective of entrepreneurs and SME representatives.

Product Regulation, Market Access and Compliance EU policy link: New Legislative Framework revision; Market Surveillance Regulation revision; Omnibus VI simplification package.
Expert input: Jan-Frederik Kremer, Director General, IVSH Industrieverband.
Focus: The impact of EU product regulation, conformity requirements, labelling, CE marking, safety obligations and compliance costs on small entrepreneurial structures

Digital Identity, Wallets and Browser Consent in Practice
EU policy link: European Digital Identity Wallet; eIDAS 2.0 implementation; Digital Omnibus consent reform.
Expert input: Betsy Annen, Global Head of Ads Ecosystems & Safety, Government Affairs and Public Policy, Google.
Expert input: Leena Whittaker, Director of Competitiveness, EuroCommerce
Focus: The practical relevance of digital identity, wallet-based services and browser consent rules for self-employed professionals, small businesses and one-person companies.