What is the eIDAS Regulation?

Regulation (EU) No. 910/2014, known as the eIDAS Regulation, is the cornerstone of Europe’s digital identity. It sets a common legal framework that ensures interoperability, security, and cross-border legal validity for electronic identification systems and trust services used by citizens, companies, and public administrations within the European Union.

The main objective of eIDAS is to build a digital European environment where any person or entity can identify themselves, sign, or exchange electronic documents with the same legal guarantees as with paper-based processes. This facilitates the development of the Digital Single Market, removing bureaucratic barriers and simplifying cross-border collaboration.

With the growth of e-commerce, business automation, and digital government, eIDAS has become a fundamental pillar for ensuring trust, traceability, and legal certainty in electronic transactions across the EU.

The eIDAS Regulation governs a set of essential trust services that create a secure digital ecosystem. These services ensure authenticity, integrity, and non-repudiation in electronic transactions, making them key components of the modern digital economy:

• Electronic signature: securely identifies the individual signing an electronic document.
• Electronic seal: ensures the origin and integrity of documents issued by legal entities.
• Electronic timestamp: certifies the exact time when a document existed and was signed.
• Electronic registered delivery: provides proof of sending and receiving digital messages.
• Website authentication: verifies the legitimacy of a domain or portal to prevent online fraud.

The Regulation also defines the role of Qualified Trust Service Providers (QTSPs), accredited entities that offer these services with the highest levels of security and legal recognition within the European Union.

The eIDAS Regulation provides a unified legal framework that enables citizens, companies, and administrations to fully trust electronic services. Its main contributions include:

• A common legal framework: harmonizes national laws and ensures interoperability between Member States, promoting economic and administrative integration.
• Legal certainty: grants electronic documents signed or sealed using qualified mechanisms the same legal value as paper documents.
• Cross-border interoperability: mandates mutual recognition of electronic identification means issued in other Member States, allowing a digital identity valid in one country to be accepted throughout the EU.
• Promotion of business digitalization: drives the adoption of electronic solutions in sectors such as public administration, banking, commerce, and healthcare, ensuring trust and regulatory compliance.
• Technical and audit requirements: sets strict standards for security, cryptographic integrity, and preservation for qualified providers.

In essence, eIDAS is the regulatory backbone of Europe’s trusted digital transformation, securing identities and electronic transactions across borders.

Qualified Trust Service Providers (QTSPs) are entities with the technical infrastructure, auditing procedures, and certifications required to guarantee that the electronic services they offer meet the highest standards of security and legal validity.

There are two main categories:

• Non-qualified providers: operate under their own responsibility, without mandatory supervision by a competent authority. Although they provide technical functionality, their services do not have the same legal value as those of a QTSP.
• Qualified providers: audited, certified, and supervised by national authorities, complying with eIDAS standards and ensuring greater levels of security, integrity, and legal reliability.

A certified QTSP can issue digital certificates, electronically sign and seal documents, manage timestamps, and offer electronic archiving services with full legal validity throughout the European Union.

EDICOM is officially recognized as a Qualified Trust Service Provider under the eIDAS Regulation. Its certification confirms the technical and organizational capacity to issue qualified certificates, generate timestamps, preserve electronic documents, and ensure the integrity of digital communications.

EDICOM’s global platform integrates all trust services within a highly secure SaaS environment designed to automate processes and reliably connect enterprise systems.