Electronic vs Digital Signatures: US, EU and UK Rules

Two terms that get mixed up

An electronic signature is a legal idea. It covers almost anything you do on a screen to sign: typing your name under an email, ticking "I agree", drawing with a finger, pasting a picture of your handwriting. The law cares about one thing above all, that you meant it as your signature.

A digital signature is a technical idea. Software computes a value from the exact bytes of the document with a private key that only the signer holds. NIST's Digital Signature Standard, FIPS 186-5 from February 2023, says such signatures are used to detect unauthorized modifications to data and to authenticate the identity of the signatory, and that a recipient can use one as evidence to a third party that the claimed signer really generated it. Change a single comma after signing and the check fails.

So every digital signature used to sign is an electronic signature, but most electronic signatures are not digital signatures. The comments to the US Uniform Electronic Transactions Act make the same point: a digital signature using public key encryption qualifies as an electronic signature, and so does the mere inclusion of your name in an email, as long as you adopted it with the intent to sign.

United States: ESIGN and UETA

Two laws work side by side. The federal ESIGN Act, 15 U.S.C. 7001 and following, covers transactions in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce. Its core rule in section 7001(a): a signature, contract or other record may not be denied legal effect, validity or enforceability solely because it is in electronic form. Section 7006(5) defines an electronic signature as an electronic sound, symbol or process, attached to or logically associated with a contract or other record and executed or adopted by a person with the intent to sign the record.

The Uniform Electronic Transactions Act is a model law that the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws approved in July 1999 for the states to enact, as Maine did in its chapter 1051. Section 7 of the uniform text says a record or signature may not be denied legal effect or enforceability solely because it is in electronic form, and that if a law requires a signature, an electronic signature satisfies the law. Its definition of an electronic signature is the same in substance as ESIGN's. ESIGN section 7002 lets a state modify or limit the federal rule by enacting UETA as the commissioners approved it in 1999.

Three details matter in practice:

Nobody has to accept electronic signing. ESIGN section 7001(b) says the law does not require anyone to agree to use or accept electronic records or signatures. UETA section 5 applies only between parties that agreed to deal electronically, judged from context and conduct, and a party can refuse to do the next transaction electronically.
Consumers get extra protection. When a law requires that information go to a consumer in writing, ESIGN section 7001(c) lets an electronic record count only after the consumer affirmatively consents, receives a statement of the hardware and software needed, and consents in a way that reasonably shows they can access the electronic form.
The copy must be keepable. Under section 7001(e), an electronic contract that the law requires in writing can be denied effect if it is not in a form all parties entitled to keep it can retain and accurately reproduce.

Notarization can be electronic too. ESIGN section 7001(g) and UETA section 11 say a requirement to notarize, acknowledge or verify a signature is met when the notary's electronic signature, together with all other information the law requires, is attached to or logically associated with the record. The other requirements of notary law still apply.

What ESIGN does not cover

Section 7003 lists exceptions, where the general rule does not apply:

Laws governing the creation and execution of wills, codicils or testamentary trusts.
State laws on adoption, divorce or other matters of family law.
The Uniform Commercial Code, except sections 1-107 and 1-206 and Articles 2 and 2A.
Court orders or notices and official court documents.
Notices of utility shutoffs; of default, acceleration, repossession, foreclosure or eviction under a credit or rental agreement for a primary residence; of cancellation of health insurance or life insurance benefits; and of product recalls or failures that risk health or safety.
Documents required to accompany the transport of hazardous materials, pesticides or other toxic materials.

The uniform UETA text excludes wills, codicils and testamentary trusts and most of the Uniform Commercial Code in its section 3, and leaves room for each state to add exclusions of its own. An excluded document is not automatically invalid if signed electronically. It just falls back on whatever other law governs it, which often means paper and ink.

European Union: eIDAS and its three levels

Regulation (EU) No 910/2014, known as eIDAS, has applied since 1 July 2016 and is directly binding in every member state. Unlike the US laws, it defines three levels:

Level	What eIDAS requires	Legal effect
Simple electronic signature (Article 3(10))	Data in electronic form attached to or logically associated with other data and used by the signatory to sign	May not be denied legal effect or admissibility as evidence solely because it is electronic or not qualified (Article 25(1))
Advanced electronic signature (Article 26)	Uniquely linked to the signatory, capable of identifying them, created with data the signatory can use under their sole control with a high level of confidence, and linked to the signed data so that any later change is detectable	Same as simple; how much weight it gets is left to national law (recital 49)
Qualified electronic signature (Article 3(12))	An advanced signature created by a qualified signature creation device and based on a qualified certificate from a qualified trust service provider	The equivalent legal effect of a handwritten signature (Article 25(2)), recognized in all member states

Two points are easy to miss. First, recital 49 says it is for national law to define the legal effect of electronic signatures, apart from the rule that a qualified one equals a handwritten one. Second, Article 2(3) says the Regulation does not affect national or Union law on the conclusion and validity of contracts or on form requirements. So if a member state requires a handwritten signature for a certain contract, eIDAS does not override that. What it guarantees is that a qualified electronic signature counts as handwritten.

The Regulation was amended by Regulation (EU) 2024/1183 of 11 April 2024, which set up the European Digital Identity Framework. The definitions of the three signature levels stayed as they were. The rule that a qualified signature based on a qualified certificate issued in one member state is recognized as qualified in all others moved from Article 25(3) to a new Article 24a.

United Kingdom: the 2000 Act and UK eIDAS

Section 7 of the Electronic Communications Act 2000 makes an electronic signature, and its certification, admissible in evidence in any legal proceedings on the authenticity or integrity of a communication or data. Its definition, as amended in 2016, covers so much of anything in electronic form as is incorporated into or logically associated with an electronic communication or data and purports to be used by the individual creating it to sign.

The UK also kept eIDAS as domestic law after leaving the EU. In the UK version, Article 25(1) and 25(2) still say an electronic signature may not be denied effect or admissibility just because it is electronic or not qualified, and that a qualified electronic signature has the equivalent legal effect of a handwritten one. Article 25(3), the EU-wide recognition rule, was omitted from 31 December 2020.

For England and Wales, the Law Commission reported on 4 September 2019 that an electronic signature is capable in law of being used to execute a document, including a deed, provided the signer intends to authenticate the document and any formalities are met. The government accepted those conclusions in March 2020. Formalities still bite: a deed must be signed in the physical presence of a witness who attests it, and the report did not cover wills.

Wills have their own rule. Section 9 of the Wills Act 1837 requires a will in writing, signed by the testator with the intention of giving it effect, in the presence of two or more witnesses present at the same time, who then sign in the testator's presence. For wills made between 31 January 2020 and 31 January 2024, presence could be by video, but the will itself still had to be signed.

US, EU and UK side by side

Question	US (ESIGN, UETA)	EU (eIDAS)	UK (2000 Act, UK eIDAS)
Is a simple e-signature valid?	Cannot be denied effect solely for being electronic	Cannot be denied effect or admissibility solely for being electronic	Admissible in evidence; cannot be denied effect solely for being electronic
Levels defined in law	One	Simple, advanced, qualified	Simple, advanced, qualified
Equal to handwritten by statute	An e-signature satisfies a law that requires a signature (UETA section 7)	Qualified only	Qualified only
Wills	Excluded from ESIGN and the uniform UETA	Left to national law	England and Wales: Wills Act 1837 section 9 formalities

What a signature from this site's tool is

The Sign PDF tool lets you draw, type or upload your signature and place it on the page. It saves a picture of the signature flattened into the page content. That is a simple electronic signature in eIDAS terms and an electronic signature under ESIGN and UETA if you adopt it with intent to sign.

It is not an advanced, qualified or cryptographic digital signature. There is no certificate that confirms who you are and no seal that would reveal a later change. If your PDF already carries a certificate-based signature, the tool writes the file anew when it saves, so that earlier signature will no longer validate in the new copy.

For everyday paperwork such as a lease renewal, a permission slip or a delivery note, a simple signature is often what the other side asks for. To fill in the form fields first, use Fill PDF Form, then sign the result. To keep the signed file private when you email it, Protect PDF adds a password with AES-256 encryption. A password controls who can open the file; it is not a signature and does not prove who signed.

How to choose the right kind

Ask first. The person or office that wants the signature decides what it accepts. Under ESIGN and UETA they do not have to accept electronic signing at all.
Look for the word "qualified". In the EU and the UK, if a document must be signed by hand and you want to sign it electronically, you need a qualified electronic signature from a qualified trust service provider.
Keep a full copy. Both ESIGN and UETA tie validity to a record that can be retained and accurately reproduced. Save the final PDF, not just the email that carried it.

This guide summarizes the statutes as general information. It is not legal advice, and courts and national laws add detail that no summary can capture. For a high-stakes document, ask a lawyer where you live.

Frequently asked questions

Is a typed name or a drawn signature legally binding?

It can be. The US ESIGN Act and UETA both define an electronic signature as an electronic sound, symbol or process attached to or logically associated with a record and adopted with the intent to sign, and both say a signature may not be denied legal effect solely because it is electronic. The EU eIDAS Regulation and the UK Electronic Communications Act 2000 also accept simple electronic signatures as evidence. Whether one is enough for a specific document depends on the law for that document, so this is general information, not legal advice.

Is a scanned or pasted signature image a digital signature?

No. A picture of your signature is a simple electronic signature. A digital signature in the technical sense is a cryptographic value computed from the document with a private key, which NIST FIPS 186-5 says can detect unauthorized changes and help authenticate the signer. A pasted image does neither: anyone who has the image can paste it, and it does not show whether the text was changed afterward.

Can I sign a will electronically?

Not under the general e-signature laws. ESIGN excludes records governed by laws on wills, codicils and testamentary trusts, and the uniform UETA text excludes the same. In England and Wales, section 9 of the Wills Act 1837 requires a will in writing, signed by the testator in the presence of two or more witnesses present at the same time. Check the rules where you live with a lawyer before you rely on any electronic will.

Do I need a qualified electronic signature in the EU?

Only when a law or the other party requires one. eIDAS gives a qualified electronic signature the equivalent legal effect of a handwritten signature and makes simple and advanced signatures admissible as evidence, but it leaves form requirements for contracts to national and Union law. If a statute in your country requires a handwritten signature for a document type, a qualified signature is the electronic route the Regulation guarantees.

Sources

Written by Tobias. Updated October 21, 2026.