eSignature Legality Guide

Situations where a standard electronic signature (SES) is generally suitable include:

• Commercial contracts between companies (such as purchase orders, order confirmations, procurement documents, sales and service agreements)
• Consumer contracts (including documents for opening new retail accounts, sales and service terms, purchase orders, order confirmations, shipping documents, user manuals, and policies, but not consumer loan agreements)
• Residential lease and service agreements (excluding terminated leases)

There are cases where a type of electronic signature other than SES, such as QES or a specifically agreed SES, is required:

• QES or specifically agreed SES is needed for transactions by individuals where the property value at the time of the transaction exceeds 1,500 Euro, except for transactions completed immediately (Subpar. 1, Par. 1 Art. 1.73 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for establishing legal entities (Subpar. 2, Par. 1 Art. 1.73 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for installment purchase and sale contracts (Subpar. 3, Par. 1 Art. 1.73 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for insurance contracts (Subpar. 4, Par. 1 Art. 1.73 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for arbitration agreements (Subpar. 5, Par. 1 Art. 1.73 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for leasing movable property for more than one year (Subpar. 6, Par. 1 Art. 1.73 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for preliminary contracts (Subpar. 7, Par. 1 Art. 1.73 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for life annuity (rent) contracts (Subpar. 8, Par. 1 Art. 1.73 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for settlement agreements (Subpar. 9, Par. 1 Art. 1.73 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for motor vehicle purchase contracts (Subpar. 10, Par. 1 Art. 1.73 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for gift contracts where the value exceeds 1,500 Euro (Par. 1 Art. 6.469 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for loan agreements by individuals exceeding 600 Euro (Par. 1 Art. 6.871 Lithuanian Civil Code) or by legal entities (Par. 2 Art. 6.871 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for partnership agreements (Par. 4 Art. 6.969 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for suretyship contracts (Art. 6.79 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for guarantees (Art. 6.91 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for earnest agreements (Art. 6.99 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for agreements on delegation and assumption of debt (Art. 6.118 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for consumer lease contracts (Art. 6.506 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for transport lease contracts (Art. 6.513, Art. 6.523 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for lease of buildings, construction works, and installations (Art. 6.531 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for enterprise lease contracts (Art. 6.538 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for land lease contracts (Art. 6.547 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for contracts for tourist services (Art. 6.749 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for franchise contracts (Art. 6.767 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for distribution contracts (Art. 6.798 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for deposit contracts by individuals (Art. 6.831 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for credit agreements (Art. 6.882 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for bank deposit agreements (Art. 6.894 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for property trust agreements (Art. 6.960 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for transfer of rights, including licenses, related to copyright (Par. 1, Art. 42, Law on Copyright and Related Rights)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for patent assignment agreements (Par. 1, Art. 42 Patent Law)
• QES or specifically agreed SES for other transactions that require a written form as mandated by the Lithuanian Civil Code or other laws (Subpar. 11, Par. 1 Art. 1.73 Lithuanian Civil Code)

Certain transactions are specifically excluded from digital or electronic processes, or require handwritten (wet ink) signatures or formal notarization, which are generally not compatible with electronic signatures or digital transaction management.

• Notarized contracts for the purchase or transfer of real estate, or transactions encumbering real property rights (Subpar. 1 Par. 1 Art. 1.74 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• Notarized marriage contracts (pre-nuptial and post-nuptial) (Subpar. 2 Par. 1 Art. 1.74 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• Notarized contracts for the sale of an enterprise if 25% or more of a Limited Liability Company’s shares are sold or the share value exceeds 14,500 Euro (Subpar. 3 Par. 1 Art. 1.74 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• Notarized gift contracts where the value exceeds 14,000 Euro (Par. 2 Art. 6.469 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• Notarized loan agreements where the amount exceeds 3,000 Euro and the loan is provided in cash (Par. 4 Art. 6.871 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• Notarized bills of exchange exceeding 3,000 Euro (Par. 5 Art. 1.105 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• Notarized official wills (Art. 5.28 Lithuanian Civil Code)
• Other transactions that must be notarized under Lithuanian law (Subpar. 3 Par. 1 Art. 1.74 Lithuanian Civil Code)

[1] An AES, or “advanced electronic signature,” is a type of electronic signature that: (a) is uniquely linked to the signer; (b) can identify the signer; (c) is created using means under the sole control of the signer; and (d) is connected to the signed data so that any changes can be detected.

[2] A QES is a qualified electronic signature, which is a digital signature that meets specific government requirements, including use of a secure signature creation device, and is certified as ‘qualified’ by the government or an authorized body.

Lithuania, following a tiered eSignature legal model, recognizes Qualified Electronic Signatures (QES), which require independent accreditation by an authorized certification body. In accordance with EU Regulation No. 910/2014 on electronic identification and trust services, Lithuania, along with other EU countries, maintains a publicly available list of supervisory authorities for qualified certificate providers.