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AssinaJá

Signature levels

Every signature in AssinaJá carries a legal weight. That weight is set by the eIDAS regulation, which defines three levels. Choosing a level is really choosing how hard it would be for a signer to later deny having signed.

The three levels

Section titled “The three levels”

SES Simple Electronic Signature

Admissible in court but may be contested. Used for low-risk acceptance flows (e.g. acknowledgements, internal sign-offs).

AES Advanced Electronic Signature

Strong presumption of validity under eIDAS Art. 26. Uniquely linked to the signatory, tamper-evident, and under sole control of the signer.

QES Qualified Electronic Signature

Legally equivalent to a handwritten signature across the EU under eIDAS Art. 25.2. Issued by a Qualified Trust Service Provider listed in the EU Trust List.

The practical difference is who carries the burden of proof — see Evidential weight in Portugal.

Identity verification

Section titled “Identity verification”

The level is only half of it. The other half is how confident the platform is that the signer is who they claim to be — shown in the app as Identity assurance.

Level What it means
Low Self-declared identity (email or link only).
Substantial Remote verification (SMS OTP and/or ID document number).
High Strong identity verification (national eID such as Chave Móvel Digital, or in-person).

A signature cannot be stronger than the identity check behind it. This is why Chave Móvel Digital reaches QES while a drawn signature does not, however careful the signer was.

Signature types you can choose

Section titled “Signature types you can choose”

When you add a signer to a document, under Signature types, these are the options:

Option in the app Level Identity
Simple signature SES Low
Initials SES Low
CMD - Chave Móvel Digital QES High
SCAP - CMD with professional attributes QES High
LDC - Local Digital Certificate AES Substantial

A signer can combine Simple signature and Initials, but only one of the three certificate-based methods — see Rules to know.

Identity verification is chosen separately, in the same dialog:

  • 2-Factor Authentication — None, SMS Code or Password;
  • Confirm ID Document — Not required or Request Document.

On a visual signature, the SMS code and the ID document confirmation raise identity assurance to Substantial; the level stays SES.

Under Activity to perform, Receives copy is not a signature: someone added this way receives the document for information and is never asked to sign.

On other screens — analytics, for example — the same types appear under their long names: Visual Signature, Visual Initials, Visual Signature + OTP SMS, Visual Signature + ID Confirmation, Digital Mobile Key, Digital Mobile Key with Attributes, Local Digital Certificate.

Choosing a level

Section titled “Choosing a level”

Match the level to what you lose if the signature is successfully denied.

  • Internal approvals, acknowledgements, low-value sign-offs — SES is proportionate.
  • Commercial contracts with an external party — add the SMS code or the ID document confirmation, so identity is verified rather than merely asserted.
  • The signer already holds a digital certificate — a lawyer with the Bar Association certificate, for example — and an advanced signature is enough: use LDC - Local Digital Certificate.
  • Anything with a statutory form requirement, or where handwritten-signature equivalence matters — use Chave Móvel Digital. It is the only option that is legally equivalent to signing by hand across the EU.

SCAP - CMD with professional attributes additionally proves a professional capacity — that the signer is acting as a lawyer, accountant, or company representative, not merely as themselves.

Section titled “Related”