Documents signed with digital signatures are legally valid and hold the same value as a handwritten signature in most regions. All documents signed with Zoho Sign meet the requirements of the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act of 2000 (ESIGN) in the United States, the electronic IDentification, Authentication and Trust Services (eIDAS) regulation in the European Union, and the Information Technology Act of 2000 (ITA) in India, along with several other digital signature laws.

We often receive questions from new users about the legality of digital signatures in their country. This guide aims to provide answers to these common questions.

DISCLAIMER

This digital signature legality guide is the result of comprehensive legal research into digital signatures on a country-by-country basis. Though it has been published with the help of our legal team and technology experts, this guide does not constitute official legal advice and should be used for general information purposes only. Please consult a licensed attorney in your region since laws change frequently.

Digital Signature Legality Guide for Australia

What is court-admissible?

This refers to whether documents signed with digital signatures can be submitted as evidence in a court. Nowadays, most countries support digital transactions and digital signatures, but with the consent of the parties involved.

What is a legal model?

A country can either have an open or tiered legal model for digital signatures. Countries with an open legal model don't require any technology standards to receive special legal status for documents signed with digital signatures. This means documents signed with Zoho Sign are automatically considered evidence in a court of law.

Countries with a tiered legal model recognize Qualified Electronic Signature (QES) , or its local equivalent, as a distinct type of digital signature. This means documents signed with QES are presumed authentic and immediately accepted as evidence in court. As such, documents signed with Zoho Sign will also be considered evidence in court along with some kind of proof.

Exclusions for Australia

  • Documents that require a notarial process
  • Documents related to migration and citizenship
  • Statutory declarations requiring a witness
  • Powers of attorney in some states
  • Bills of exchange
  • Health insurance, life insurance, and general insurance
  • Documents, notices, and consents of credit-related services
  • Property transactions in South Australia
  • Transfer of intellectual property
  • Country Court- Admissible Legal Model Government Resources
  • Argentina Yes (with some exceptions) Tiered Digital Signature Law

Exclusions for Argentina

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Corporate minutes that contain resolutions, and appointments and removals of officers and directors
  • Resignation letters of employees
  • Agreements related to real estate rights

Exclusions for Austria

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Legal transactions under family and inheritance law
  • Company registers

Exclusions for Belgium

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Real estate contracts that create or transfer rights
  • Contracts requiring the involvement of courts or public authorities
  • Contracts involving collateral securities furnished by persons acting for purposes outside their trade, business, or profession
  • Contracts governed by family law or the law of succession

Exclusions for Brazil

  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for Bermuda

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Wills
  • Real estate agreements
  • Country Court- Admissible Legal Model Government Resources
  • Bulgaria Yes Tiered eIDAS regulation

Exclusions for Bulgaria

  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for Brunei

  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for Canada

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Real estate agreements, wills, and powers of attorney

Exclusions for Chile

  • Agreements that require the attendance of one or more parties
  • Real estate agreements related to acquisition, modification, and extinction
  • Leasing agreements
  • Appointment of legal guardians of minors
  • Marital agreements
  • Declaration of wills
  • Mortgages
  • IP transfers
  • Documents that require notarization
  • Agreements that require the physical presence of one or more parties
  • Documents related to family law

Exclusions for China

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Personal relationship agreements
  • Some real estate agreements
  • Country Court- Admissible Legal Model Government Resources
  • Colombia Yes Tiered eIDAS regulation

Exclusions for Colombia

  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for the Czech Republic

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Lease and real estate agreements
  • Country Court- Admissible Legal Model Government Resources
  • Croatia Yes Tiered eIDAS Regulation

Exclusions for Croatia

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Country Court- Admissible Legal Model Government Resources
  • Cyprus Yes Tiered eIDAS Regulation

Exclusions for Cyprus

  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for Denmark

  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for Ecuador

  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for Egypt

  • Transfer of intangible property
  • Real estate buying and selling contracts
  • Documents that require notarization
  • Country Court- Admissible Legal Model Government Resources
  • Estonia Yes Tiered Civil Code Act

Exclusions for Estonia

  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for Finland

  • Real estate buying and selling contracts
  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for France

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Marriage agreements
  • Labor agreements
  • Some real estate agreements

Exclusions for Germany

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Marriage agreements
  • Real estate agreements

Exclusions for Greece

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Some real estate agreements
  • Country Court- Admissible Legal Model Government Resources
  • Guatemala Yes Tiered Electronic Communications and Signatures Law

Exclusions for Guatemala

  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for Hong Kong

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Wills
  • Powers of attorney
  • Government leases
  • Some real estate agreements

Exclusions for Hungary

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Family agreements
  • Marriage agreements

Exclusions for Iceland

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Employee contracts

Exclusions for India

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Real estate agreements
  • Powers of attorney
  • Wills
  • Trust deeds

Exclusions for Indonesia

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Notarial deeds
  • Court summonses
  • Bond certificates
  • Real estate documents
  • HR documents
  • Asset transaction documents

Exclusions for Ireland

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Wills
  • Trusts
  • Powers of attorneys
  • Property transactions

Exclusions for Israel

  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for Italy

  • Loan agreements
  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for Japan

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Real estate property transfers
  • Wills

Exclusions for Kazakhstan

  • Documents that require notarization
  • HR documents

Exclusions for Latvia

  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for Lithuania

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Country Court- Admissible Legal Model Government Resources
  • Luxembourg Yes Tiered eIDAS Regulation

Exclusions for Luxembourg

  • Government leases
  • Powers of attorney
  • Real estate agreements
  • Employment contracts
  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for Macau

  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for Malaysia

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Real estate property transfers
  • Wills
  • Money lending agreements
  • Country Court- Admissible Legal Model Government Resources
  • Mexico Yes Tiered Federal Civil Code

Exclusions for Mexico

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Marriage agreements
  • Documents related to tax obligations
  • Country Court- Admissible Legal Model Government Resources
  • Malta Yes Tiered eIDAS Regulation

Exclusions for Malta

  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for New Zealand

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Powers of attorney
  • Real estate agreements
  • Wills

Exclusions for Nigeria

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Powers of attorney
  • Wills

Exclusions for the Netherlands

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Country Court- Admissible Legal Model Government Resources
  • Norway Yes Tiered eIDAS Regulation

Exclusions for Norway

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Debt certificates
  • Premarital agreements
  • Loan and security agreements

Exclusions for Peru

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Mortgages

Exclusions for the Philippines

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Some real estate agreements
  • Country Court- Admissible Legal Model Government Resources
  • Poland Yes Tiered eIDAS Regulation

Exclusions for Poland

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Real estate agreements
  • Company shares
  • Bills of exchange

Exclusions for Portugal

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Employee terminations
  • Real estate agreements

Exclusions for Romania

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Some real estate agreements of immovable property
  • Personal guarantee agreements

Exclusions for Russia

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Powers of attorney
  • HR documents
  • Some real estate agreements

Exclusions for Saudi Arabia

  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for Singapore

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Wills
  • Negotiable instruments
  • Powers of attorney
  • Some real estate agreements

Exclusions for South Africa

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Long-term real estate agreements
  • Changes in real estate property ownership
  • Wills
  • Bills of exchanges

Exclusions for South Korea

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Changes in real estate property ownership
  • Transfers of intangible assets
  • Wills

Exclusions for Spain

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Marriage agreements
  • Some real estate agreements
  • HR documents

Exclusions for Sri Lanka

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Wills
  • Powers of attorney
  • Contracts governed by family law or the law of succession

Exclusions for Sweden

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Government agreements
  • Share certificates
  • Employee termination letters

Exclusions for Switzerland

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Wills
  • Trusts
  • Some real estate agreements
  • Inheritance contracts
  • Country Court- Admissible Legal Model Government Resources
  • Slovakia Yes Tiered eIDAS Regulation

Exclusions for Slovakia

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Country Court- Admissible Legal Model Government Resources
  • Slovenia Yes Tiered eIDAS Regulation

Exclusions for Slovenia

  • Documents that require notarization

Exclusions for Taiwan

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Agreements with government agencies

Exclusions for Thailand

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Contracts of immovable properties
  • Mortgage contracts
  • Some agreements of ships

United Arab Emirates

E-signatures are valid in the United Arab Emirates. They derive their validity under the Federal Law No. 1 of 2006 on Electronic Commerce and Transactions ("E-commerce Law)".The act further identifies the specific criteria of e-signatures called "Secure Electronic Signatures" under Article 17.

Documents signed with Zoho Sign meets the requirements for Secure Electronic Signature in the following manner:

  • Unique to the person using it
  • Capable of identifying such person
  • Was, at the time of signing, under the sole control of the Signatory in terms of the creation data and the means used
  • Linked to the Electronic Record to which it relates in a manner that provides reliable assurance as to the integrity of the signature such that if the record was changed the Electronic Signature would be invalidated

The use of Secure Electronic Signatures gives a greater level of security and evidentiary value but is not essential for an electronic document or e-signature to be valid in law. According to the E-commerce Law, you cannot use e-signatures and will require a wet-ink or physical signature for the following:

  • Transactions and issues relating to personal law such as marriage, divorce, and wills
  • Deeds of title to immovable property
  • Negotiable instruments
  • Transactions involving the sale, purchase, lease (for a term of more than 10 years) and other disposition of immovable property and the registration of other rights relating to immovable property
  • Any document legally required to be attested before a notary public

As Zoho Sign will be a foreign service provider having a foreign Electronic Attestation Certificates issued by a foreign Certification Service Provider, we recommend to you as a good practice to add a "Use of E-Signature clause," which states that you use Zoho Sign to digitally sign your agreements and it is binding pursuant to Article 23 Clause 6 of the E-commerce Law. Country Court- Admissible Legal Model Government Resources

Exclusions for the United Kingdom

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Marriage agreements
  • Some real estate agreements
  • Negotiable instruments

Exclusions for the United States

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Some real estate agreements
  • Wills
  • Divorce agreements
  • Codicils
  • Terminations of insurance

Exclusions for Turkey

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Wills
  • Contracts under family law
  • Inheritance agreements

Exclusions for Ukraine

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Real estate agreements
  • Contracts under family law
  • Inheritance agreements

Exclusions for Uruguay

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Real estate agreements
  • Labor agreements
  • Insurance agreements

Exclusions for Vietnam

  • Documents that require notarization
  • Transfers of movable assets
  • Real estate agreements
  • Intangible property transfers

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Frequently asked questions:

  • Are digital signatures legally binding?

    Documents signed with digital signatures are legally valid in many regions, including the United States, the European Union, and India. However, the legal validity differs from country to country, and it’s important to check the laws in your region.

  • Why is it valuable to use e-signatures in legal documents?

    Signing your documents with e-signatures can help prove the authenticity and integrity of legal documents, as the accompanying encryption and audit trails make it difficult for documents to be tampered with.

  • Do all countries recognize digital signatures?

    There are some countries that have not yet adopted digital signatures.

  • Are my documents secure in Zoho Sign?

    Yes. Zoho Sign stores your documents in secure data center and encrypts them with industry-standard encryption algorithms.

  • What kind of signatures does Zoho Sign offer?

    Zoho Sign offers three types of electronic signatures: standard electronic signatures, advanced electronic signatures (AES), and qualified electronic signatures (QES).

  • Does Zoho Sign offer digital signing through Sign with Singpass?

    Yes, you can use your Zoho Sign account to get your documents digitally signed through Sign with Singpass.

  • Does Zoho Sign offer digital signing with Aadhaar eSign?

    Yes, you can use your Zoho Sign account to sign documents with Aadhaar eSign. The app is compliant with the Information Technology Act, 2000. Learn more

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