Statistical reports are gradually moving to the web
In 2012, Statistics Estonia will collect the data from nearly 40,000 economic units. From now on, it is possible to check on the web site of Statistics Estonia whether the economic unit has been picked into the sample and has an obligation to submit the data.
Statistics Estonia conducts annually over 200 statistical actions, a large part of which concerns economic units. Statistics Estonia collects data from them with statistical reports.
“Statistics Estonia is trying to use the data available in the state registers as much as possible for producing the statistics. But not all the necessary information is available in state databases and that is the reason why the data must be asked directly from economic units,” remarked Ms Kaja Sõstra, Head of the Methodology Department.
In 2012, economic units can check the information regarding the reports they have to submit to Statistics Estonia on the web site of Statistics Estonia www.stat.ee under the heading Andmete esitamine > Andmete esitamise kohustus s (the search can be made in case the enterprise has the valid Commercial Register code of the Republic of Estonia). To learn about the obligation of data submission, only the registry code of the economic unit has to be entered. The information of Statistics Estonia will not be published in the official publication Ametlikud Teadaanded any more.
As an essential innovation, Ms Sõstra also noted that with the beginning of the year 2012 the transition period will come to an end when Statistics Estonia collected from economic units the duplicate data, which are available in the electronic annual report and which economic units submit to the Commercial Register. Since 2012, the data of the annual report submitted to the Commercial Register have already been displayed as pre-filled in eSTAT – the main data collection channel of Statistics Estonia. “The economic units have to fill in only the rows which have not been asked in the annual report or which they have not submitted there,” added Ms Sõstra.
At the same time, for producing enterprise and economic statistics, Statistics Estonia needs far more data than submitted by the economic units with the annual reports to the Commercial Register. Statistics Estonia also uses annual reports submitted in the form which enables electronic processing, but regarding the other essential indicators characterising the economy and entrepreneurial environment Statistics Estonia still collects data with statistical reports. “The amount of data submitted to Statistics Estonia decreases, but the obligation to submit the data will remain,” emphasised Ms Sõstra.