Use of administrative data in the production of the official statistics has dramatically increased in the recent years. Although it has to be pointed out that such use has been going on for quite a number of years, it is also a fact that the intention of administrative data use has been essentially changed in the last decades. If in the past administrative data were mostly used for the purposes of sampling frame construction or as the auxiliary variable in the estimation process, it is now more and more popular to use administrative data also as a direct data source. The motivation for such a wide range of activities in this area is most of all the clear possibility of essential budget cuts if the costly data collection in the case of “classical” statistical survey is replaced by much cheaper gathering of the data from administrative records.

As mentioned, use of administrative sources at different phases of the statistical process has a significant impact on the quality of statistical products and services. First, some general reflections on the use of administrative data for statistical purposes are presented. Then, a cross-word of phases of the statistical process with quality components is shown with a detailed discussion of the impact of administrative sources, threats and opportunities for the national statistical institutes and possible solutions for the weaknesses. A few case studies are described to prove the suggested solutions. Also, the authors discuss the usability of well-known and internationally accepted standards for defining quality components and also the definition of phases of the statistical process.

Keywords: Administrative data; Statistical process; Quality of statistical data and services

Biography: Metka Zaletel used to work at National Statistical Office in SLovenia, at the present time she's Head of Health Data Center at National Institute of Public Health. Her main interests are in the fields of quality of statistical data, processes and services, efficiency in statistical processes and use of administrative data in statistics.