designforregulation

Design for regulation (DfR) is an approach to policymaking and design that seeks to embed regulatory thinking into the development of rules, systems, and services. It combines design thinking with regulatory engineering to create clear, enforceable, and adaptable rules that achieve public goals while minimizing unintended burdens.

DfR emphasizes user-centered and outcomes-focused design. It aims to make compliance straightforward, reduce administrative costs, and improve regulatory outcomes by considering how rules will be implemented in practice, how evidence will be gathered, and how regulators and the regulated interact with the system.

Core principles include clarity and simplicity, proportionality, transparency of decision criteria, feedback and learning loops, and stakeholder involvement. Rules are tested for readability and impact during drafting, with attention to equity, accessibility, and the potential for adaptive or risk-based oversight.

Common methods include regulatory impact assessments, mapping of requirements to processes, plain-language drafting, service design and co-design with affected groups, and the use of digital portals and regtech tools to monitor compliance and performance.

Applications span financial services, data protection, environmental regulation, public procurement, and e-government. DfR also informs the design of regulatory sandboxes and phased pilots that allow testing of rules in controlled environments before wider rollout.

Critiques note potential tensions between simplicity and precision, the risk of under-regulation or over-burden, and resource demands. Critics also warn of design bias or insufficient attention to long-term effects, underscoring the need for robust evaluation and governance.