In 2023, Cyprus was among the EU member states with one of the lowest percentages of citizens interacting with public authorities online (66%), according to data released by Eurostat, the EU's statistical service. This figure is close to the EU average (69%), significantly higher than Romania (23%) but much lower than Denmark, the highest-scoring country at 98%.

The data represents a substantial decline for Cyprus, which saw its online interaction rate fall from 90% in 2022, while the EU average slightly increased from 68% to 69%.

These statistics reflect the share of EU citizens aged 16-74 who used a website or app of a public authority in the past 12 months.

The share of online interactions with public authorities varied greatly among EU member states. Denmark led the way with 98%, followed by Finland, the Netherlands, and Sweden (all at 95%). Conversely, Romania (23%), Bulgaria (30%), and Germany (58%) recorded the lowest figures.

A closer look at specific e-government activities in the EU shows that, in 2023, 42% of people used online services to obtain information about services, benefits, laws, or opening hours. This was followed by downloading or printing official forms (40%), accessing personal information (39%), and making appointments or receiving official communications (37%).

The share of individuals who submitted tax declarations online was lower, at 29%. Fewer people accessed public databases (19%), requested official documents or certificates (18%), or applied for benefits or entitlements (17%).

In Cyprus, the most popular online activity was obtaining information about services, benefits, laws, and opening hours (50%). This was followed by accessing personal information (43%), downloading or printing official forms (31%), requesting benefits or entitlements (28%), and accessing public databases or registers (25%).

Other activities included submitting tax declarations online (23%), requesting official documents or certificates (22%), receiving official communications or documents (19%), and making appointments (15%).

Compared to 2022, the most significant drop was in the share of citizens receiving official communications, which plummeted from 88% to 19%. There were also declines in accessing personal information (from 51% to 43%) and making appointments (from 32% to 15%). On the other hand, the share of citizens obtaining information increased (from 41% to 50%), as did those requesting benefits or entitlements online (from 11% to 28%) and accessing public databases or registers (from 15% to 25%).