Signed in January 2026, a new India-EU digital pact promises faster, paperless trade by aligning electronic signatures and seals, easing cross-border contracts and compliance for businesses.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Communication Networks, Content and Technology (DG CONNECT) signed an administrative arrangement on advanced electronic signatures and seals on 27 January 2026.
The agreement was signed by the secretary of MeitY and the director-general of DG CONNECT.
The arrangement aims to strengthen India–EU digital cooperation by enabling interoperability between electronic signatures, electronic seals and public key infrastructure (PKI) systems. It is expected to make cross-border digital transactions more secure, efficient and legally predictable for businesses on both sides.
Under the framework, India and the European Union plan to link their respective trusted lists of recognised service providers. This will make it easier to validate electronic signatures and seals issued in India in the EU, and vice versa, in line with each side’s legal and regulatory requirements.
The cooperation is designed to operate within the Information Technology Act, 2000, and the applicable EU legal framework.
Implementation on the Indian side will be led by MeitY through the Controller of Certifying Authorities (CCA), which regulates the country’s digital signature infrastructure. The arrangement provides a structured platform for future collaboration in trusted digital services.
For trade, the impact could be significant. Indian exporters and European buyers will be able to sign contracts, invoices and compliance documents digitally, reducing reliance on physical paperwork and courier services. This is expected to cut transaction time and costs while easing verification processes.
The benefits are likely to be most pronounced for micro, small and medium enterprises, which often face higher compliance and documentation burdens in cross-border trade. Faster document validation could also improve trust and legal certainty in India-EU digital commerce.
