Law of the People's Republic of China on Electronic Signatures
Law of the People's Republic of China on Electronic Signatures
Law of the People's Republic of China on Electronic Signatures
Order of the President [2004] No.18
August 28, 2004
The Law of the People's Republic of China on Electronic Signatures, which was adopted during the 11th meeting of the Standing Committee of the
10th National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on August 28, 2004, is hereby promulgated. The Law shall take effect on April 1, 2005.
President of the People's Republic of China: Hu Jintao
Law of the People's Republic of China on Electronic Signatures
(Adopted during the 11th meeting of the Standing Committee of the 10th National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on August 28, 2004)
Contents
Chapter I General Provisions
Chapter II Electronic Data
Chapter III Electronic Signatures and Certification
Chapter IV Legal Liabilities
Chapter V Supplementary Provisions
Chapter I General Provisions
Article 1 This Law is enacted in order to regulate electronic signatures, establish the legal effects of electronic signatures, and maintain the lawful rights and interests of relevant parties.
Article 2 "Electronic Signatures," as mentioned in this Law, shall refer to the data included and attached, in electronic form, in electronic data for the use of identifying the signatory, and for verifying the signatory has recognized the contents therein.
"Electronic Data," as mentioned in this Law, shall refer to information created, sent, received or stored by means such as electrons, optics, magnets.
Article 3 The parties may stipulate the use, or non use, of electronic signatures or electronic data in a contract or other documents and documentations in civil activities.
The legal effect of any document that uses electronic signatures and/or electronic data, as stipulated by the parties, shall not be denied simply because it takes the form of an electronic signature and/or electronic data.
The above-mentioned provisions shall not apply to the following documents:
1. Documents concerning personal relations, such as marriages, adoptions and successions, etc.;
2. Documents concerning transfers of real estate rights and interests, such as lands and properties, etc.;
3. Documents concerning the termination of water supplies, heat supplies, gas supplies and/or power supplies, and other public-utility services; and/or
4. Other circumstances, under which electronic documents do not apply, as prescribed by laws and administrative regulations.
Chapter II Electronic Data
Article 4 Any electronic data that can show, in material form, the contents that it specifies, and which may be picked up for reference and used at any time, shall be regarded as complying with the written form, as prescribed by laws and regulations.
Article 5 Electronic data that meet the following requirements shall be deemed to satisfy the requirements for the form of the original, as prescribed by laws and regulations:
1. Electronic data that are capable of effectively showing the contents they specify, and which may be picked up for reference and used at any time; and
2. Electronic data that are capable of unfailingly ensuring that the contents are complete and unaltered, from the time when they finally come into being. But the integrity of the electronic data will not be influenced by the adding of endorsements in the electronic data and/or alterations of forms that occurred during the course of data interchanges, storage and displays.
Article 6 Any electronic datathat meets the following requirements shall be deemed to satisfy the requirements for document preservation, as prescribed by laws and regulations:
1. Being capable of effectively showing the contents it specifies, and which may be picked up for reference and used at any time;
2. The format of the electronic data is the same as the format when it was created, sent or received, or the format is not the same but accurately reflects the contents of the original creation,
sending, or receiving; and
3.
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