SMEV (interdepartmental electronic interaction system)

SMEV (Interdepartmental Electronic Interaction System) is a state information system created to ensure secure electronic interaction between information systems of federal executive bodies, state authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, local self-government bodies, state extra-budgetary funds (SFR, FOMS, FSS) and other organizations participating in the provision of state and municipal services. SMEV is a key element of the e-government infrastructure of the Russian Federation, allowing departments to exchange data electronically without the need to send interdepartmental requests on paper and without requiring citizens and businesses to provide documents and information that are already at the disposal of the state (the "single submission of information" principle). Thanks to SMEV, citizens can receive state services on the "one window" principle — providing a minimum set of documents, the rest of the data is requested by government bodies from each other independently through the system, which reduces the time of receiving the service and reduces corruption risks.

How SMEV works: architecture and technologies

Interaction through SMEV is built on the principle of a "single data bus" (ESB — Enterprise Service Bus), to which exchange participants connect — information systems of government bodies, state extra-budgetary funds, multifunctional centers (MFC) and organizations participating in the provision of services. Each participant goes through a connection procedure, which includes: development of an electronic service in accordance with unified methodological requirements (WSDL format for SMEV 2.x or REST/OpenAPI for SMEV 3/4), testing in the SMEV development environment (SMEV-Test), registration of the service in the register of electronic services and obtaining access to the production environment. Data exchange is carried out using the format of SMEV messages (XML wrapped in a SOAP envelope with MIME attachments or simple JSON), with a mandatory enhanced qualified electronic signature (UKEP) to ensure legal significance, as well as using certified CIPF (CryptoPro CSP, ViPNet CSP) for encryption and integrity. The system supports synchronous interaction (request-response, timeout up to 60 seconds) and asynchronous (using a router service and message queues). SMEV 3 and 4 also support proactive services (push notifications) — when a department independently notifies the consumer of an event (for example, a change in the status of an application). To organize effective interaction with SMEV on the applicant's side, platforms similar to Sintezm are often used, which automate the preparation, sending, processing of responses and logging of requests, as well as SKIF-BP for managing business processes related to interdepartmental interaction.

Types of SMEV information and the most popular services

Thousands of types of information (TI) provided by various owner departments are available through SMEV. Each type of information has a unique identifier, an approved provision regulation (maximum response time, composition of attributes, request cost) and a technological connection scheme. Among the most popular: verification of the validity of a passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation (Ministry of Internal Affairs), information about state registration of legal entities and individual entrepreneurs (FNS, USRLE/USRIP), extracts from the Unified State Register of Real Estate (Rosreestr, USRN), information about the occurrence of insured events and the status of personal accounts (SFR), education and qualification data (Rosobrnadzor, FRDO), information about vehicle registration (State Traffic Safety Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs), information about disability and benefits (Ministry of Labor), criminal record information (MIA/GIAC), civil registry data (acts of civil status). To connect to a specific type of information, it is necessary to submit an application to the owner body, conclude an information interaction agreement, and pass technological and functional testing. Developers of information systems must ensure correct processing of all possible responses, including errors and refusals, as well as compliance with personal data protection requirements.

Requirements for connecting to SMEV and ensuring security

Connecting to SMEV imposes strict requirements on the participant's information system. Technical requirements: support for HTTPS/TLS 1.2/1.3 protocols, SOAP (with WSDL description) or REST (with OpenAPI specification) depending on the SMEV version, the use of UKEP for signing each message, maintaining exchange logs with the possibility of providing them on request. Information protection requirements: the presence of certified CIPF for traffic encryption, certification of the information system for information security requirements (FSTEC), categorization of the CII facility (if applicable), appointment of those responsible for security. Organizational requirements: appointment of an interaction administrator, development and approval of interaction regulations, staff training. For state customers, the use of only domestic software included in the register of Russian software is mandatory, including DBMS (Postgres Pro), operating systems (Astra Linux), CIPF (CryptoPro, ViPNet). The Fintech company provides comprehensive services for preparing and connecting to SMEV: surveying the current information system for compliance with requirements, modifying functionality to support SMEV protocols and formats, configuring cryptographic protection, passing testing in the development environment, obtaining access to the production environment and subsequent operational support.

Development of SMEV: versions 3 and 4

SMEV is constantly developing in accordance with the orders of the Government of the Russian Federation. SMEV 2.x (current industrial version): based on SOAP/WSDL, requires a WSDL description of the service, synchronous and asynchronous exchange, zonal routing through a router service. SMEV 3 (being introduced gradually): transition to REST architecture with OpenAPI specifications, support of the JSON format along with XML, introduction of registry models (provision of information without the exchange of electronic documents, through direct access to the registry), improved performance. SMEV 4 (promising version, pilot projects): built on message queue technologies (RabbitMQ or similar), fully asynchronous interaction, support for event-driven architecture, throughput of up to 10,000 messages per second, built-in analytics and monitoring mechanisms. Key development directions: expanding the list of life situations for proactive provision of services (without a citizen's application), integration with regional and municipal information systems, the use of a unified biometric system and ESIA for identification. Following the current SMEV requirements is a mandatory condition for working with state information systems in the Russian Federation, and Fintech specialists help clients stay up to date with changes and adapt their systems in a timely manner.