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Electronic signatures and trust services — the basics

Trusted Profile, personal signature and qualified signature — what is the difference in Poland?

A practical guide to Poland’s Trusted Profile, personal signature, mObywatel and qualified electronic signatures under eIDAS.

Author: Maciej MaciejewskiPublished: 16 August 2026

If you work, live or sign documents in Poland, you may come across a Trusted Profile (Profil Zaufany), an electronic ID card (e-dowód) or the mObywatel app. It is natural to ask whether you also need a qualified electronic signature.

The answer depends on the document, its recipient and the requirements of the specific process — not on the name of the tool alone. The fact that a document is digital does not itself determine the legal form it requires or how it should be signed.

Before choosing a method, establish three things: what the document concerns, who will receive it, and which requirements follow from legislation, a contract or the rules of the relevant system. Only then can you choose an appropriate way to make the declaration.

This article explains the key terms for people unfamiliar with the Polish system. For a transaction with material consequences, always check the applicable rule, the contract and the recipient’s requirements.

In everyday language, “signing a document” sounds like one action. Under Polish civil law, the important question is which form is required for the legal act.

The Polish Civil Code distinguishes, among others, documentary form, written form and electronic form.[1]

  • Documentary form is met when a declaration of intent is made in a document in a way that makes it possible to identify the person making it. A document is any information carrier that allows its content to be read.[1]
  • Written form generally requires a handwritten signature on a document containing the declaration of intent.[1]
  • Electronic form requires a declaration of intent in electronic form bearing a qualified electronic signature. A declaration made in this form is equivalent to one made in written form.[1]

This distinction matters in practice. Some business arrangements may work through email, approval in a system or another electronic document if neither the law nor the parties require a stricter form. Where legislation, a contract or a procedure requires written form, the electronic equivalent is generally electronic form with a qualified electronic signature — not simply a click or an image of a signature placed in a PDF.[1]

So the first question is not “which signature should I use?”, but: which form does this particular act require?

eIDAS: the European framework

The eIDAS Regulation — Regulation (EU) No 910/2014 — provides the EU framework for electronic identification and trust services in electronic transactions in the internal market.[2] In relation to signatures, it distinguishes in particular:

  1. an electronic signature — electronic data attached to or logically associated with other electronic data and used by the signatory to sign;
  2. an advanced electronic signature — an electronic signature meeting additional requirements, including a unique link to the signatory and the ability to detect later changes to the data;
  3. a qualified electronic signature — an advanced electronic signature based on a qualified certificate and created using a qualified electronic signature creation device.[2]

These are legal concepts and requirements under EU law. They are not the names of specific Polish services.

Under eIDAS, an electronic signature cannot be denied legal effect or admissibility as evidence solely because it is electronic or not qualified. At the same time, a qualified electronic signature has the legal effect equivalent to a handwritten signature.[2]

That means two things in practice:

  • a non-qualified electronic signature is not automatically irrelevant just because it is not qualified;
  • the equivalence of a qualified signature to a handwritten signature does not remove the need to check other requirements, such as the correct form, authority to act for a company or the rules of a particular system.

Poland-specific tools and services

The names below are useful to know when dealing with Polish public administration or Polish counterparties. They should not be treated as direct labels for the eIDAS categories above.

1. Trusted Profile (Profil Zaufany) and trusted signature (podpis zaufany)

A Trusted Profile is a Polish electronic identification method. It lets a user confirm their identity in public services and, in processes that provide for it, make a trusted signature.[3]

For an international reader, the distinction is important: the Trusted Profile is the identification method; a trusted signature is the signature made through it in an eligible process.

It is not a free version of a qualified electronic signature. When a public authority or portal accepts a Trusted Profile, it may be the right tool for that process. That does not automatically mean it will be accepted for every commercial contract, cross-border transaction or situation requiring electronic form under the Polish Civil Code.

2. mObywatel

mObywatel is an app and a service environment, not a separate type of signature under eIDAS.

When discussing document signing, distinguish the name of the app from the method used within it. mObywatel offers the Personal signature service, which allows a PDF document to be signed using an electronic ID card (e-dowód).[4]

The app also offers a Qualified signature service. It allows users to sign up to five documents per month free of charge with a qualified electronic signature for private matters unrelated to professional activity.[5]

In these cases, mObywatel is the way to access a service — not a signature category in its own right.

3. Personal signature in an electronic ID card (e-dowód)

A personal signature is linked to an electronic ID card. In mObywatel, it can be used to sign a PDF document. In dealings with Polish public authorities, it has the legal effect equivalent to a handwritten signature. Outside that relationship, both parties must agree to use it for it to be valid between them — for example, the signer and a company or other private institution.[4][6]

The practical point is straightforward: a personal signature can be useful, but do not assume that every recipient will accept it. For a contract, internal company procedure or process involving an overseas partner, check the requirements of that particular process. Rules applicable to Polish public administration do not automatically carry over to other relationships.

It is also best not to give a personal signature a simplified eIDAS label. For the recipient, its actual statutory and contractual scope matters more than a marketing classification.

4. Qualified electronic signature

A qualified electronic signature is an eIDAS concept that meets the conditions for a qualified electronic signature. It has the legal effect equivalent to a handwritten signature throughout the European Union.[2]

It is particularly relevant where:

  • legislation, a contract or a procedure expressly requires it;
  • the act requires electronic form as the equivalent of written form;
  • the recipient expects a qualified electronic signature;
  • a solution under the eIDAS framework is needed, including for cross-border dealings.

If, after checking the requirements of the document, process and recipient, you conclude that a qualified electronic signature is the right solution, see MNet’s page on qualified electronic signatures for more about the solution and the issuing process.

If working in a cloud-based model matters, see SimplySign — a qualified signature in the cloud.

The key differences at a glance

Term What it is What not to assume
Trusted Profile (Profil Zaufany) A Polish electronic identification method used in public processes.[3] That it is simply a free qualified electronic signature.
mObywatel An app and service environment, including the Personal signature service.[4] That the app itself is an eIDAS signature category.
Personal signature A mechanism linked to an electronic ID card; it has a defined effect in public administration and requires the parties’ consent outside it.[4][6] That every counterparty or system must accept it.
Qualified electronic signature A qualified electronic signature within the meaning of eIDAS.[2] That it is required for every electronic document.

Important: A signature, regardless of its type, does not by itself determine whether the entire legal act is valid. It does not replace an assessment of the agreement’s content, the authority of the person acting for a company, the applicable representation rules or other conditions for the act’s validity.

Where the rules come from

For a specific situation, look at several layers at the same time:

  1. eIDAS sets EU rules for electronic identification and trust services, including definitions and the legal effect of a qualified electronic signature.[2]
  2. The Polish Act on Trust Services and Electronic Identification complements the application of eIDAS in Poland, sets out national institutional arrangements and regulates some matters left to national law.[7]
  3. The Polish Civil Code determines the required form of the legal act, including documentary, written and electronic form.[1]
  4. Specific legislation and process rules may add their own requirements — for administrative, tax, registry or court matters, as well as contractual or system procedures.

When assessing a particular case, it is not enough to establish whether the document has been signed. Check whether the way the declaration was made meets the requirements of that act and its recipient.

eIDAS 2.0

“eIDAS 2.0” is a common name for the amendments introduced by Regulation (EU) 2024/1183. One important direction is the European Digital Identity Wallet, intended to make it easier to use digital identity and verified data across the EU.[8][9]

This does not automatically change the character or scope of current Polish solutions such as a Trusted Profile, mObywatel or a personal signature. For a specific document, the requirements of the process and its recipient still decide.

Summary

Trusted Profile, mObywatel, personal signature and qualified electronic signature all relate to digital processes in Poland, but they are not interchangeable.

  • A Trusted Profile helps with identification and public-administration matters in Poland.
  • mObywatel is an app, not an eIDAS signature category.
  • A personal signature uses an electronic ID card and must be assessed in the context of the recipient and the process.
  • A qualified electronic signature has the legal effect equivalent to a handwritten signature, but is not automatically required for every electronic act.

Start with the process, not the product.

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