Electronic Signature Law of the People's Republic of China (2019 Amendment)

Electronic Signature Law of the People's Republic of China (2019 Amendment)

(Adopted at the 11th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Tenth National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on August 28, 2004, amended for the first time in accordance with the Decision on Amending the Six Laws Including the Electric Power Law of the People's Republic of China adopted at the 14th Session of the Twelfth National People's Congress on April 24, 2015, and amended for the second time in accordance with the Decision to Amend Eight Laws Including the Construction Law of the People's Republic of China adopted at the 10th Session of the Standing Committee of the Thirteenth National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on April 23, 2019)
Contents
Chapter I General Provisions
Chapter II Data Message
Chapter III Electronic Signature and Certification
Chapter IV Legal Liabilities
Chapter V Supplementary Provisions

Chapter I General Provisions

Article 1 The present Law is formulated for the purpose of regulating the act of electronic signature, establishing the legal effect of electronic signature, and maintaining the lawful rights and interests of the relevant parties concerned.

Article 2 The “Electronic Signature” as mentioned in the present Law shall refer to the data included and attached in data message in electronic form, for the use of identifying the identity of the signatory and showing that the signatory has recognized the contents therein.
The “Data Message” as mentioned in the present Law shall refer to the information created, sent, received or stored by such means as electron, optics, magnetism or the similar means.

Article 3 The parties may stipulate to use or not to use electronic signature or data message in the contract or other documents and documentations in civil activities.
The legal effect of any document using electronic signature and data message as stipulated by the parties shall not be denied only because it takes the form of electronic signature and data message.
The aforesaid provisions shall not be applicable to the following documents:
1. Documents concerning such personal relations as marriage, adoption and succession, etc.;
2. Documents concerning stopping water supply, heat supply, gas supply, and other public utility services; and
3. Other circumstances under which the electronic documents are not applicable as prescribed by laws and administrative regulations.

Chapter II Data Message

Article 4 Any data message that can show the contents it specifies in material form, and may be picked up for reference and use at any time, shall be regarded as complying with the written form as prescribed by laws and regulations.

Article 5 The data message meeting the following requirements shall be regarded as satisfying the requirements for the form of the original as prescribed by laws and regulations:
1. Data message that is capable of effectively showing the contents it specifies and may be picked up for reference and use at any time; and
2. Data message that is capable of unfailingly ensuring that the contents are complete and unaltered from the time when it finally comes into being. But the integrality of the data message will not be influenced by the adding of endorsement in the data message and the alteration of forms occurred during the course of data interchange, storage and display.

Article 6 Any data message that meets the following requirements shall be regarded as satisfying the requirements for document preservation as prescribed by laws and regulations:
1. Being capable of effectively showing the contents it specifies and may be picked up for reference and use at any time;
2. The format of the data message is the same as the format when it is created, sent or received, or the format is not the same but is able to accurately show the contents of original creation, sending, or receiving; and
3. Being capable of identifying the addresser, addressee of the data message and the time for sending and receiving.

Article 7 No data message may be rejected for being used as evidence only because it is created, sent, received or stored by ways of electron, optics, magnetism, or the similar means.

Article 8 The following factors shall be taken into consideration when making examination on the truthfulness of any data message as evidence:
1. The reliability of the methods for creation, storage or transmission of data message;
2. The reliability of the methods for keeping the integrality of the contents;
3. The reliability of the methods for identifying the addresser; and
4. Other relevant factors.

Article 9 Under any of the following circumstances, the data message shall be regarded as being sent by the addresser:
1. Being sent upon the authorization of the addresser;
2. Being sent automatically by the information system of the addresser; or
3. The addressee finds that the consequence complies, upon examination, with the validation on the data message according to the method approved by the addresser.
Unless there are different stipulations by the parties on the matters prescribed in the preceding paragraph, the stipulations shall be followed.

Article 10 In case the receiving of any data message needs to be confirmed as prescribed by laws and administrative regulations or the stipulations of the parties, the receiving shall be confirmed. If an addresser has received any confirmation of the addressee on the receiving, the data message shall be regarded as having been received.

Article 11 The time when any data message enters into a certain information system out of the control of the addresser shall be regarded as the time for sending the data message.
In case an addressee has designated a given system to receive any data message, the time when the data message enters into the given system shall be regarded as the time for receiving the data message. If no given system is designated, the time when the data message enters into any system of the addressee for the first time shall be regarded as the time for receiving the data messag......