General

digital skills

Competences per DigComp 2.3 AT across basic to advanced digital tasks.

How the laws define this

National strategies and digital frameworks consistently view digital skills as a spectrum of competencies ranging from basic everyday literacy for citizens to advanced, specialized ICT capabilities for the workforce. They uniformly apply these abilities across formal education, reskilling, and lifelong learning to foster public participation in the digital economy. The main divergence lies in structural framework alignment and functional scope. The Digital Skills Initiative and the National Action Plan for Digital Skills 2021-2025 explicitly align their definitions with the DigComp framework or taxonomy. In contrast, policies like the Digital Strategy for Cyprus 2020-2025 and the National eSkills Strategy 2022–2025 of the eSkills Malta Foundation establish categorical competency tiers without referencing DigComp. Additionally, while most frameworks focus on practical technology usage and development, the Action Plan for the Digital Transformation of Slovakia 2023–2026 uniquely expands the definition to include the qualifications required to govern digital technologies.

Synthesised from the 12 statutory definitions below. Each one is quoted in full, with its source.

How jurisdictions differ

What is distinctive in each definition, binding law in force first. Showing 8 of the 12 instruments that define this term; all are listed under Definitions below.

JurisdictionInstrumentStatusWhat is distinctive
LatviaDigital Transformation Guidelines 2021–2027In ForceAdds targets for population uptake by 2027 and specifies competencies for citizens, students, teachers, civil servants and the workforce.
AustriaDigital Skills InitiativeIn ForceExplicitly adapts DigComp 2.3 AT taxonomy with levels and learning outcomes for curriculum mapping and certification under the DKO.
MaltaNational eSkills Strategy 2022–2025 (eSkills Malta Foundation)In ForceFrames skills across four pillars for practical delivery in education, society, workforce and ICT professionals.
SlovakiaStrategy of Digital Transformation of Slovakia 2030In ForceLimits to basic to advanced competences for digital economy participation via formal education, lifelong learning and reskilling programmes.
CyprusDigital Strategy for Cyprus 2020-2025SupersededCategorises competencies from basic everyday literacy through intermediate workforce to specialist ICT skills like developers and data scientists.
BulgariaDigital Transformation of Bulgaria for the period 2020–2030SupersededEmphasises vocational and lifelong learning alongside basic literacy and advanced ICT for workforce reskilling and societal inclusion.
SlovakiaNational Strategy for Digital Skills of the Slovak Republic and Action Plan 2023–2026In ForceSpecifies spectrum from basic literacy to expert ICT specialist capabilities across education, employment and lifelong learning.
CyprusNational Action Plan for Digital Skills 2021-2025 (e-skills Action Plan)SupersededAligns explicitly with European DigComp framework's five areas for structuring curricula, training and assessment programmes.

Definitions (12)

Capabilities defined according to the DigComp taxonomy as adapted in DigComp 2.3 AT, spanning basic use and safety (e.g., e‑government access, online privacy) to intermediate and advanced employment‑oriented skills (e.g., data literacy, IT specialist competences). The framework provides levels and learning outcomes used for curriculum mapping and certification under the DKO.

A categorical framework of digital competencies ranging from basic everyday digital literacy, through intermediate workforce competences, to specialist ICT skills such as developers and data scientists, used to target education and upskilling initiatives across the population and labour market.

Competencies aligned with the European DigComp framework, comprising information and data literacy, communication and collaboration, content creation, safety, and problem solving for effective digital participation. The Plan uses this definition to structure curricula, training and assessment across citizen and workforce programmes.

Encompasses a spectrum of competencies required to use digital technologies effectively, ranging from basic digital literacy for everyday tasks to advanced ICT professional competences for specialised technical roles. The Strategy frames these skills for practical programmatic delivery across education, society and the labour market.

Competencies of citizens, students, teachers, civil servants and the workforce enabling the use of e‑services, participation in digital employment, and lifelong learning; includes both basic and advanced digital abilities and targets for population uptake by 2027.

A range of competencies covering basic digital literacy, vocational and lifelong learning, and advanced ICT competences required for education, workforce reskilling and broader societal digital inclusion.

A range of basic to advanced competences across the workforce and education systems, covering digital literacy, reskilling/upskilling for ICT roles, and targeted training for civil servants to support digital uptake.

Basic to advanced competences enabling citizens and the workforce to participate in the digital economy, encompassing formal education, lifelong learning and targeted reskilling programmes as defined for planning and measurement in the Strategy.

The set of competences, knowledge and abilities individuals need to effectively use digital technologies in education, work and daily life, including formal curricula, teacher training and lifelong learning provisions aimed at digital inclusion.

Means the competences and qualifications required by both citizens and specialist workers to effectively use, develop and govern digital technologies, spanning formal education, vocational training and lifelong learning. The Action Plan details strategies and programmes to build these skills from schools to seniors to ensure uptake and inclusion.

Encompasses competencies spanning basic digital literacy through to specialist ICT capabilities required by the labour market, including the ability to use, understand and develop digital technologies in educational, professional and social contexts.

A spectrum of competences covering basic digital literacy, intermediate workplace-relevant skills, advanced technical abilities and expert ICT specialist capabilities used across education, employment and lifelong learning contexts.

Not to be confused with

Digital competences

Digital competences focus broadly on skills for life and work in the digital age, while digital skills here specify competences across basic to advanced tasks often aligned with frameworks like DigComp.

Basic digital skills

Basic digital skills cover only safe, confident everyday online use, whereas digital skills encompass the full spectrum from basic to advanced levels.

intermediate and advanced digital skills

Intermediate and advanced digital skills address only specialised ICT competencies for employment and advanced tasks, excluding the basic level included in digital skills.

Questions and answers

What frameworks do national digital skills definitions use?

Several definitions align with or adapt the DigComp framework, such as Austria's use of DigComp 2.3 AT and Cyprus's alignment with European DigComp. Others frame skills categorically or across pillars without naming a specific taxonomy.

Do digital skills definitions cover workforce and ICT specialists?

Yes, most definitions span from basic literacy to advanced and specialist ICT capabilities for employment, workforce reskilling and labour market needs. Examples include competences for ICT professionals in Malta and expert capabilities in Slovakia.

Which digital skills policies are still in force?

In force policies include Latvia's Digital Transformation Guidelines 2021–2027, Austria's Digital Skills Initiative, Malta's National eSkills Strategy 2022–2025, and Slovakia's National Strategy for Digital Skills 2023–2026. Others like Cyprus and Bulgaria strategies are superseded.