As a European Union (EU) Member State, Romania is governed by Regulation No. 910/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 2014 on electronic identification and trust services for electronic transactions in the internal market (eIDAS). For more information on eIDAS, please read the Electronic Signature Laws & Regulations in the EU.
Overview
In Romania, the use of electronic signatures, including certificate-based digital signatures, by natural or legal persons is more common than the use of electronic signatures by public authorities or institutions. However, use is steadily increasing across private and public sectors.
Next to the eIDAS Regulation, the key laws in Romania that regulate the use of electronic signatures include:
- Law No 214/2024 on the use of electronic signatures, time stamps, and the provision of trust services based on them (Law No 214/2024)
- The Civil Procedure Code which states that the communication of subpoenas and other procedural acts, as well as of court decisions by a court of law bear the qualified electronic signature or an advanced electronic signature based on an electronic signature certificate issued by a public authority or institution in Romania; and
- Law no. 53/2003 on the Labour Code has provisions on the conditions under which certain employment related documents may be signed by means of electronic signature.
EU Member States have the obligation to establish, maintain and publish trusted lists of Qualified Trust Service Providers (QTSPs) and the qualified trust services provided by them. A QTSP certified in any EU Member State will be recognized as a QTSP by all other Member States. Accordingly, no EU Member State may question the qualified status once a QTSP has been added to the trusted list by the supervisory authority of another Member State. The list of QTSP providers for Portugal is available at https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/tl-browser/#/tl/RO.
Special Considerations
Transacting with public sector entities
Pursuant to Law No 214/2024:
- documents issued in electronic format by public authorities and institutions are signed with a qualified electronic signature or an advanced electronic signature created with a digital certificate issued by a public authority or institution in Romania;
- public authorities and institutions are required to accept electronic documents signed with an electronic signature, applied in accordance with the provisions of eIDAS Regulation and this law;
- in order to receive electronic documents, public authorities and institutions make available their own portals or use such tools made available by third parties. In cases where an electronic document cannot be received as previously detailed, public authorities and institutions use electronic mail to receive the electronic document;
- documents issued by public authorities and institutions following the receipt of documents in accordance with the conditions above are communicated in electronic format, unless requested otherwise;
- public authorities and institutions are required to publish online information on the manner of receiving electronic documents.
Use cases that generally require a traditional signature
In Romania, documents that generally require the use of a handwritten signature include:
- Wills
- Documents signed in front of a notary public
- As an exception, some Trade Registry offices may have a more formalistic approach and insist on wet ink signature on documents
Disclaimer: Information on this page is intended to help businesses understand the legal framework of electronic signatures. However, Adobe cannot provide legal advice. You should consult an attorney regarding your specific legal questions. Laws and regulations change frequently, and this information may not be current or accurate. To the maximum extent permitted by law, Adobe provides this material on an "as-is" basis. Adobe disclaims and makes no representation or warranty of any kind with respect to this material, express, implied or statutory, including representations, guarantees or warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or accuracy.
