Electronic signatures in the United Kingdom

In short

An electronic signature is capable in law of executing a document, including a deed, provided the signer intends to authenticate it and any execution formalities are satisfied (Law Commission, 2019). The main law: Electronic Communications Act 2000, retained eIDAS, Law Commission 2019.

What the law says

England and Wales

Three sources matter. Section 7 of the Electronic Communications Act 2000 makes an electronic signature, and any certification of it, admissible in evidence on questions of the authenticity or integrity of an electronic communication or data. Regulation (EU) No 910/2014 (eIDAS) continues to apply in the UK as retained (now "assimilated") law, with UK amendments: Article 25 provides that an electronic signature "shall not be denied legal effect and admissibility as evidence in legal proceedings solely on the grounds that it is in an electronic form or that it does not meet the requirements for qualified electronic signatures". And in September 2019 the Law Commission of England and Wales published Electronic execution of documents, confirming its view that an electronic signature is capable in law of executing a document, including a deed, provided the signer intends to authenticate the document and any execution formalities are satisfied. The government accepted that analysis in March 2020.

The key formalities are:

• Simple contracts need no particular form. Most business agreements, including tenancy agreements of three years or less (Law of Property Act 1925, s 54(2)), can be signed electronically.
• Deeds must be signed in the presence of a witness who attests the signature (Law of Property (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1989, s 1(3); for companies, Companies Act 2006, s 44). The Law Commission concluded that the witness must be physically present; watching over video is not enough under current law. A deed can be signed electronically with a witness in the room, but AiresDocs has no witness workflow, so we recommend wet ink or a specialist process for deeds.
• Registered land. HM Land Registry accepts only specific forms of electronic signature for deeds it registers: conveyancer-certified signatures with a physically present witness and a one-time code sent by text, and qualified electronic signatures (practice guide 82). Transfers, legal charges and leases over seven years that need registration should go through a conveyancer.
• Wills must be signed in the presence of two witnesses (Wills Act 1837, s 9); the temporary pandemic-era allowance for video witnessing has ended. Do not e-sign a will.

Scotland and Northern Ireland

Scotland has its own regime under the Requirements of Writing (Scotland) Act 1995, which since 2014 provides for electronic documents and electronic signatures, with different rules for when an electronic document is "self-proving" (broadly, it needs an advanced or qualified signature). Northern Ireland's law of deeds and contracts is similar to England and Wales. The Electronic Communications Act 2000 and retained eIDAS apply across the UK.

What AiresDocs provides

A simple electronic signature for every signer, with an evidence package: unique signing links sent to named addresses, explicit consent, an append-only event log and SHA-256 hashes of the original and final contract, checkable on a public verification page. It is not a qualified electronic signature or a notarisation service. What courts look for, and how each piece of evidence maps to it, is in How electronic signatures work.

Sources

• Electronic Communications Act 2000, section 7 (legislation.gov.uk)
• Regulation (EU) No 910/2014 (eIDAS) as retained in UK law (legislation.gov.uk)
• Law Commission, Electronic execution of documents, report of 4 September 2019 and government response
• Law of Property (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1989, section 1 (deeds)
• Companies Act 2006, section 44 (execution of documents by companies)
• Wills Act 1837, section 9 (signing and attestation of wills)
• HM Land Registry practice guide 8 (execution of deeds) and practice guide 82 (electronic signatures)
• Requirements of Writing (Scotland) Act 1995 (legislation.gov.uk)

If a link stops working or the law changes, email support@airesdocs.com and we will update this page; changes are dated in the changelog.