Countries

The electronic signature in Dominican Republic

The development of the digital signature is part of the ambitious project of the República Digital, which “seeks to guarantee access to information and communication technologies for Dominicans, helping to close the digital divide and providing better services to the public.” The Dominican rule that regulates the digital signature is Law 126-02 on Electronic Commerce,…

Electronic Signature in Argentina

In the Argentine Republic, though there’s been a ban since the year 2001( Law on Digital Signature Nº 25.506 in 2001, following the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Signatures), it was in 2012 when the use of digital signatures began to be allowed in the private sector, only for signing HR documentation and for public…

Electronic signature in Brazil

The use of the electronic signature in Brazil is based on the ICP regulation 24th of August 2.002-2001. In this case, the digital signature is valid when its certified by ICP, or by any other agreed PKI. It’s legally valid in what we call ” advanced digital signature” and does not consider the ”simple electronic…

The e-signature in Canada

Canadian laws, both federally and in each of its provinces give electronic signatures the same value as the handwritten signatures. On a federal level, the use of digital signatures was officially approved by The Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) in 2004. The e-signature is equivalent to a physical signature and both are equally…

The electronic signature in Chile

Governed by Ley sobre documentos electrónicos, firma electrónica y servicios  de certificación de dicha firma (19.799 de 2002). In article 3, the law recognizes the electronic signature in Chile as legal and applicable and in article 5 their admissibility. The law differentiates the electronic signature from the advanced electronic signature. Unlike other countries, in Chile…

The electronic signature in Costa Rica

In this case the regulation is Law 8454, on Certificates, Digital Signatures and Electronic Documents. In Costa Rica there is a differentiation between digital signatures and advanced digital signatures; however, in the above-mentioned law, it recognizes the possibility of legally binding the actors involved in electronic transactions, which makes it possible to bring into the…

The electronic signature in Ecuador

According to Law No. 2002-67 concerning e-signatures,e-commerce, the e-signature in Ecuador has the same legal validity as the handwritten signature, as long as it fulfils the following requirements: To be unique To uniquely identify the signatory’s authorship and identity Its creation and verification method is reliable, secure and unalterable for the purpose to which the…

Electronic signature in El Salvador

Updated in September 2023 The validity and regulation of electronic signature in El Salvador is covered by the Electronic Signature Law of 2015. In this law, both the simple electronic signature and the certified electronic signature – known as the advanced electronic signature in Spain – are equated with handwritten signatures. Both have full legal…

The electronic signature in the United States of America

In the English-speaking world, a distinction is made between electronic signatures and digital signatures, whereby both are valid. The digital signature is made with a digital certificate, while the electronic signature is similar to the simple electronic signature of eIDAS: a signature on a document, click on an acceptance clause, drawing the signature with a…

The electronic signature in Guatemala

The regulations on the electronic signature in Guatemala are identical to those in Spain prior to the entry into force of the European eIDAS regulations. In this country, the legal framework is determined by Ley 47-2008: Ley para el Reconocimiento de las Comunicaciones y la Firma Electrónica, without any further modifications. According to this law,…

The electronic signature in Mexico

The electronic signature in Mexico is mostly regulated. Mexico is one of the countries with the highest business volume using electronic signatures

The electronic signature in Nicaragua

The regulatory framework for the electronic signature in Nicaragua is Ley 729 on Electronic Signatures, differentiating between e-signatures and certified electronic signatures. The latter is considered to have the same validity as a handwritten signature. According to this regulation, the e-signature is defined as: ”Electronic data integrated into a data message or logically linked to…

The electronic signature in Panama

In this case, the legal framework is defined by two laws and an Executive Decree, Ley 51 del 22 de Julio del 2008, la Ley 82 del 9 de Noviembre de 2012 and Decreto Ejecutivo 684 del 18 de Octubre del 2013. According to these regulations, we are dealing with e-signature and qualified electronic signature….

The electronic signature in Paraguay

In Paraguay, Law No. 4017 on the legal validity of electronic signatures, digital signatures, data messages and electronic files was signed in 2010 and came into force in 2011. The application of the law that regulates the electronic signature in Paraguay is wider than the Argentinean one, and it is limited by the fact that…

The electronic signature in Peru

The law on the digital and electronic signature in Peru is Law 27269. This law refers to electronic signatures and digital signatures: Electronic signature: Refers to any symbol based on electronic means used or adopted by a given party with the precise intention of linking or authenticating a document so that it meets the features…

The electronic signature in Puerto Rico

The current regulation in Puerto Rico is Law 359 of 2004, regarding electronic signatures. Unlike most Latin American countries, Puerto Rico is more similar to the United States system than to Spain and, therefore, to Europe, due to its status as a Commonwealth of the United States. Key points about electronic signatures in Puerto Rico…

The electronic signature in Uruguay

In 1998, Uruguay became the first country in South America to adopt the digital signature. The law in charge of regulating the Electronic Signature in Uruguay is Law 18600. Again, this regulation is very similar to the Spanish one, although in Spain there is a difference between the electronic signature – i.e simple electronic signature,…

The electronic signature in Venezuela

The legal framework for the regulation of the electronic signature in Venezuela is the Law 1204, of December 13, 2000. This regulation recognizes the legal validity of the electronic signature that meets the requirements to be specified below. Unlike the legislation of other countries, in this case the lack of compliance with these requirements will…