Electronic signature
How bids and public contracts are signed electronically in the UK and Ireland: portal submission, e-signature platforms, deeds and authority to sign.
Updated on September 5, 2026
An electronic signature is any electronic mark made with the intention of authenticating a document: a typed name, a signature drawn on screen, a click in an e-signature platform, or a cryptographic certificate. In public procurement it is how the form of tender and the contract itself are executed, and United Kingdom practice is far lighter than in most of continental Europe.
How it works
The Electronic Communications Act 2000 makes electronic signatures admissible in evidence, and the Law Commission confirmed in 2019 that an electronic signature satisfies a statutory requirement for a signature where the signatory intends to authenticate the document. There is no rule of procurement law requiring a qualified certificate. The retained UK version of the eIDAS regime keeps the same three levels, simple, advanced and qualified, and maintains a UK trust list, but buyers rarely insist on the top level.
In practice, the security of a bid comes from the eTendering portal rather than from a certificate. You register a named user, the portal records who uploaded what and when, and that audit trail plus a declaration ticked in the response is treated as the signature of the tender. Many buyers ask for no signature at all at bid stage and only execute a document with the winner.
At contract stage the buyer sends the contract through an e-signature platform, or asks for a signed and scanned PDF. The exception is a deed, used for works contracts, guarantees, bonds and collateral warranties, where the signature has to be witnessed and the witness must observe the signing. In Ireland the position is similar under the eIDAS Regulation and the Electronic Commerce Act 2000, and tenders are submitted through eTenders in the same way; some Irish buyers do ask for a qualified certificate on particular forms, so read the instructions.
What it means for a bidder
Set up your portal accounts properly. Register in the company's name, with a named user who is authorised to commit the business, and keep the account with someone who will still be there at the deadline. A tender uploaded from a personal account or a former employee's login causes real problems.
Check what each tender asks for: an unsigned upload, a scanned signature, a platform signature, or a certificate. Where a signature is required, sign the document requested, not the zip file containing it. Where a deed is required, plan the witnessing; it cannot be done retrospectively.
Keep authority in writing. If someone other than a director signs, hold a written delegation, because buyers do ask for it before award, and the supplier information you submit will already have named your authorised representative.
Example
An electrical contractor bids for a £95,000 street lighting contract with a district council. The instructions require no signature at bid stage, so it uploads its pricing and method statement through the portal before the deadline. Once selected, it receives the contract through an e-signature platform, the managing director signs it there, the council countersigns, and the executed copy is filed by both parties the same day.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a signature certificate to bid in the UK?
Almost never. Portal submission by a registered named user is the norm, and a qualified certificate is only needed where the instructions say so.
Is a scanned handwritten signature valid?
Usually yes in the UK, where the intention to authenticate is what counts, provided the buyer accepts that form. It is not sufficient for a deed, which needs a witnessed signature.
Who signs for a consortium?
Either the lead member under a written mandate from the others, or every member signs, depending on what the instructions require. Agree it before the deadline, not after.