Time Tax: The Social Cost of Administration

The article analyzes the concept of the "time tax," referring to the hidden cost of administrative work that the state shifts onto the citizen. The author introduces the notion of DIY Government, in which the individual becomes their own administrator and coordinator between institutions. The text argues that the actual size of bureaucracy depends not on the number of officials, but on the "social administrative footprint." Using examples of Polish digitalization and the Estonian "Only Once" principle, it is shown that technology itself does not eliminate bureaucracy, but merely transforms it. The key to improving the quality of the state lies in interoperability and the internalization of organizational costs by the system, rather than burdening the user, while simultaneously maintaining privacy and data protection.