(1)

Member States need to put in place the necessary technical means allowing them to process electronically signed or sealed documents that are required when using an online service offered by, or on behalf of, a public sector body.

(2)

Pursuant to Article 27 and Article 37 of Regulation (EU) No 910/2014, Member States that require an advanced electronic signature or an advanced electronic seal for the use of an online service offered by, or on behalf of, a public sector body, are to recognise advanced electronic signatures and advanced electronic seals, advanced electronic signatures and advanced electronic seals based on a qualified certificate and qualified electronic signatures and seals in specific formats, or in alternative formats validated pursuant to specific reference methods.

(3)

To facilitate cross-border validation of electronic signatures or seals, and to improve the cross-border interoperability of electronic transactions, Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2015/1506 (2) laid down reference formats for advanced electronic signatures and advanced electronic seals to be supported by Member States. As a result of new technologies, practices, standards and technical specifications that have been developed, Implementing Decision (EU) 2015/1506 should be repealed. This Implementing Regulation should provide a list of standard formats and provisions for the recognition of those standard formats.

(4)

The standard formats listed should reflect established practices and be widely recognised within the relevant sectors. Where other advanced electronic signature or advanced electronic seal formats than those commonly technically supported are used to electronically sign or seal, methods for the validation across borders of advanced electronic signatures or advanced electronic seals should be provided. To enable the receiving Member States to rely on the validation methods of another Member State, it is necessary for the sending Member State to provide easily accessible information on those validation methods. Therefore, that information on the applicable validation method should be included in the electronic documents, in the advanced electronic signatures or advanced electronic seals, or in the electronic document containers.

(5)

Where advanced electronic signature or seal alternative validation methods suitable for automated processing are available in a public service of a Member State, such validation methods should be made available and provided to the receiving Member State. Nonetheless, the provisions of Article 27(1) and (2) and of Article 37(1) and (2) of Regulation (EU) No 910/2014 should still apply when the automated processing of alternative validation methods is not technically feasible.

(6)

To provide for comparable requirements for validation and to increase trust in the validation methods provided by Member States for other advanced electronic signature or seal formats than those commonly supported, the requirements set out in this Regulation for those validation methods, draw from the requirements for the validation of qualified electronic signatures and seals referred to in Article 32 and Article 40 of Regulation (EU) No 910/2014, and from the requirements for the validation of advanced electronic signatures and advanced electronic seals based on qualified certificates referred to in Article 32a and Article 40a of Regulation (EU) No 910/2014.

(7)

The Commission regularly assesses new technologies, practices, standards, or technical specifications. In accordance with Recital 75 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1183 of the European Parliament and of the Council (3), the Commission should review and update this Regulation, if necessary, to keep it in line with global developments, new technologies, standards or technical specifications and to follow the best practices on the internal market.

(8)

Member States requiring an advanced electronic signature, an advanced electronic signature based on a qualified certificate, an advanced electronic seal, or an advanced electronic seal based on a qualified certificate as set out in Article 27(1) and (2) and of Article 37(1) and (2) of Regulation (EU) No 910/2014, should recognise respectively advanced electronic signatures using formats or associated signature containers, or advanced electronic seals using formats or associated seal containers that comply with the technical specifications listed in this Regulation. Such obligation to recognise advanced electronic signatures or advanced electronic seals, when using an online service offered by, or on behalf of, a public sector body, should apply for as long as the validation of advanced electronic signatures or advanced electronic seals would be required by EU or national laws, starting from their creation. To provide Member States with sufficient time to amend their validation applications, the relevant requirements of this Regulation should become applicable only 12 months after the entry into force of this Regulation. To ensure the transition to state-of-the-art standards, the obligation to recognise newly created advanced electronic signatures or advanced electronic seals in the standard formats listed in Implementing Decision (EU) 2015/1506 should be limited in time, until 24 months after the entry into force of this Regulation.

(9)

Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council (4) and, where relevant, Directive 2002/58/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (5) apply to the personal data processing activities under this Regulation.

(10)

The European Data Protection Supervisor was consulted in accordance with Article 42(1) of Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council (6) and delivered its opinion on 21 October 2025 (7).

(11)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the committee established by Article 48 of Regulation (EU) No 910/2014,