Are electronic signatures legal in Singapore? ETA and Singpass explained

Singapore is one of the easiest places in Asia to sign documents electronically. Its law has recognised electronic signatures for more than two decades, the government offers free digital signing through Singpass, and the list of excluded documents has been shrinking. But the exclusions that remain are important (wills, property sales, trusts and most powers of attorney), and it is easy to get them wrong.

The short answer

• The Electronic Transactions Act 2010 (ETA) makes electronic records and electronic signatures legally effective. Most contracts, employment documents and tenancy agreements can be signed electronically.
• A "secure electronic signature" under the ETA gets a legal presumption that it belongs to the signer and was applied with intent to sign. Sign with Singpass produces this kind of signature.
• Excluded from the ETA's signature rules: wills; most trusts and powers of attorney (lasting powers of attorney made through the Office of the Public Guardian are the exception); negotiable instruments and similar transferable documents unless they meet the electronic transferable record rules added in 2021; and contracts for the sale or disposition of immovable property and conveyances, except through the new government conveyancing systems being rolled out under a 2025 law.

The law: the Electronic Transactions Act 2010

Section 8: electronic signatures

Where a rule of law requires a signature, section 8 of the ETA treats that requirement as met by an electronic record if a method is used to identify the person and show their intention about the information, and the method is either as reliable as appropriate for the purpose, or proven in fact to have done those things. This is technology-neutral: a typed name in an email, a drawn signature on a PDF, or a click-to-sign platform can all satisfy it, depending on the context. The question in a dispute is usually evidence, which is why audit trails matter.

Secure electronic signatures and the presumption

The ETA also recognises a stronger category. A signature is treated as a "secure electronic signature" if, through a specified security procedure or a commercially reasonable procedure agreed by the parties, it can be verified that at the time it was made it was unique to the signer, capable of identifying them, created under their sole control and linked to the record so that any change to the record would invalidate the signature. In court, a secure electronic signature is presumed to be the signature of the person it correlates to and to have been applied with the intention of signing, unless the contrary is proved. A secure electronic record is likewise presumed not to have been altered since the relevant time.

A digital signature made with a certificate from a certification authority is the standard way to meet this, and the ETA's schedule on specified security procedures sets out when a digital signature qualifies.

Who licenses certification authorities

The Controller of Certification Authorities, a function within the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), runs a voluntary accreditation scheme under the ETA and the Electronic Transactions (Certification Authority) Regulations. Netrust is the IMDA-accredited public certification authority. Accreditation is not compulsory, but certificates from an accredited CA make the presumptions easier to rely on.

Sign with Singpass

Sign with Singpass lets anyone with the Singpass app sign documents remotely through participating signing platforms. The government states that signatures made through it are secure electronic signatures under the ETA, using signing certificates issued by the government (GovTech) through Singpass. The private signing key is kept on your Singpass app, so it cannot be exported as a file.

Documents you cannot sign electronically (or need a special signature)

The First Schedule to the ETA lists matters to which its writing and signature rules do not apply. After amendments in 2021 and later, the key points are:

The 2021 reforms: electronic transferable records

The Electronic Transactions (Amendment) Act 2021 took trade documents such as bills of lading, bills of exchange and promissory notes off the exclusion list and created a framework for electronic transferable records, based on the UNCITRAL Model Law. When that amendment passed, the government said the remaining items would be removed once supporting frameworks were ready.

Lasting powers of attorney

Amendments to the Mental Capacity Act in 2021 allowed LPAs to be made electronically, and OPG Online launched in November 2022. Donors create and sign the LPA online using Singpass, and a certificate issuer (such as an accredited medical practitioner or a lawyer) still has to certify it. A paper form is only accepted in exceptional cases with the Public Guardian's consent.

Property: the Electronic Conveyancing and Other Matters Act 2025

Parliament passed the Electronic Conveyancing and Other Matters Bill in October 2025. It allows the option to purchase, sale and purchase agreement and conveyancing deeds to be executed electronically, and witnessed remotely by a witness in Singapore, when done through a prescribed electronic transaction system: the Singapore Land Authority's Digital Conveyancing Portal for private and commercial property and the HDB Flat Portal for HDB flats. The rollout is phased, starting with the option to purchase for private residential resale. Outside those systems, the ETA exclusion for immovable property still applies, so an option to purchase signed on a general e-signature platform carries real risk. Your conveyancing lawyer will tell you which route applies to your transaction.

Deeds and company execution

A Singapore company can execute a document, including a deed, without a common seal under section 41B of the Companies Act, by signatures of a director and the company secretary, two directors, or a director in the presence of a witness. Whether each of those signatures can be electronic is less settled. The Law Society of Singapore issued guidance in 2025 saying electronic signatures can be effective for deeds other than excluded documents, but recommending caution where witnessing is involved. For financing deeds, many lenders still insist on wet ink.

Employment contracts

Employers must give employees covered by the Employment Act their key employment terms in writing within 14 days of starting, and the Ministry of Manpower accepts these in soft or hard copy. Employment contracts can be signed electronically. See can an employment contract be signed electronically.

Tenancy agreements

Residential and commercial tenancy agreements are routinely signed electronically in Singapore, and stamp duty is paid through IRAS e-Stamping within 14 days of signing, whether the agreement was signed on paper or electronically. One caution: the ETA exclusion covers contracts for the "disposition of immovable property, or any interest in such property", and a lease is technically an interest in land. Standard short tenancies are widely treated as fine to e-sign, but for long or registrable leases take legal advice. More in can you e-sign a lease.

Government filings and court evidence

Government services (ACRA's BizFile, IRAS, CPF) use Singpass or Corppass login for submissions, so you sign by acting in the system rather than by uploading a signed PDF. In court, electronic records are admissible under the Evidence Act, and the ETA presumptions help when the signature is a secure one.

How to get a digital certificate in Singapore

• Sign with Singpass is free for individuals with the Singpass app, but it only works through platforms that have integrated it. The key stays in your Singpass app, so you cannot use it as a file on other websites.
• Netrust issues certificates for individuals and organisations. Some products are delivered on tokens or as remote signing services; if you receive an exportable .pfx or .p12 file, it can be used with standard PDF software.

KovaPDF's Digital Signature tool needs a .pfx or .p12 file and its password. Tokens, smart cards and Singpass cannot be used on any website, including ours. See how to get a digital signature certificate.

Which KovaPDF tool to use

• Contracts, NDAs, employment letters, tenancy agreements: Request Signatures sends each signer a private link (with an optional access code), collects signatures in order or all at once, and returns a signed PDF with a certificate of completion and a trusted timestamp. These are simple electronic signatures with an audit trail. They meet section 8 of the ETA for most documents, but they are not secure electronic signatures and do not carry the Singpass presumption.
• Just you: Sign PDF places a drawn, typed or uploaded signature image on the page.
• Certificate signatures: if you hold an exportable Netrust or other certificate as a .pfx or .p12, Digital Signature creates a PAdES signature with a trusted timestamp and long-term validation data. Whether it qualifies as a secure electronic signature depends on the certificate and how you hold it.
• Checking what you received: Verify PDF Signature shows whether a Singpass or certificate signature is intact and trusted.

Not suitable for any online tool, including KovaPDF: wills, and property sale contracts or conveyances outside the government's conveyancing portals. For the differences between signature types see digital vs electronic signature.