Use of administrative data

(1) Before ordering or amending a federal statistic, the Federal Statistical Office shall examine whether data already exist at public administrative bodies, or at bodies performing functions of public administration, that are qualitatively suitable for producing the respective federal statistic, including quality assurance.
(2) For examining suitability, an electronic administrative data information platform shall be established at the Federal Statistical Office. To build up this information platform, the bodies referred to in subsection (1), or their supervisory authorities, shall transmit to the Federal Statistical Office, on request, metadata on their administrative data, in particular on its origin, structure and content. To maintain the administrative data information platform, the bodies from which data was requested under sentence 2 shall inform the Federal Statistical Office of every change to the metadata concerning their administrative data. The information contained in the administrative data information platform is made publicly available.
(3) The bodies referred to in subsection (2) shall, on request, transmit to the Federal Statistical Office individual data without name and address (formally anonymised individual data), where these are necessary to carry out further examinations of the suitability of administrative data for statistical purposes, and the federal ministry with subject-matter responsibility has commissioned the Federal Statistical Office to carry out such an examination. In the case of Land bodies responsible for performing functions of public administration, agreement shall be reached with the respective competent Land ministries.
(4) Insofar as the Federal Statistical Office establishes the suitability of the administrative data, it should, subject to other statutory provisions, be used for producing the respective federal statistic. The transmission of the data must be regulated in the statutory provision ordering or amending the federal statistic.