European Union and Egypt Align Electronic Signatures and Seals

The European Commission and Egypt have reached a significant milestone in their digital cooperation, achieving technical alignment of electronic signatures and seal schemes. This development makes Egypt the first country outside Europe whose electronic signatures framework is technically aligned with the EU. The alignment is expected to simplify cross-border government and business exchanges between the European Union and Egypt.

The technical assessment of Egypt's Trusted List for Electronic Signatures and Seal Schemes under the eIDAS Regulation was successfully completed, allowing Cairo to be incorporated into the EU Third Countries Trusted List. This confirms technical compatibility and alignment between European Union and Egyptian electronic signature and seal schemes, enabling their validation by EU Member States.

The work on electronic signatures and seals is part of a broader effort to deepen EU and Egypt digital cooperation, as expressed in the EU-Egypt Strategic and Comprehensive Partnership and reiterated in their Joint Summit Statement of October 2025. This alignment is in line with the objectives of the Pact for the Mediterranean, which sets out sharing expertise and concrete e-Governance solutions.

The European Commission is aiming to conclude similar tracks with other third countries in the coming months, as part of its International Digital Strategy. The technical assessment was undertaken by teams in DG Connect, DG DIGIT, and their counterparts in Egypt's Ministry of Communications and Information Technology and the Information Technology Industry Development Agency of Egypt.

This deliverable sets an important milestone in the objectives of the European Commission to achieve technical recognition of electronic signatures or seals created in third countries as meeting the requirements of advanced electronic signatures or seals in accordance with the eIDAS Regulation. The regulation was amended in 2024 by the Digital Identity Framework.

The alignment of electronic signatures and seals between the EU and Egypt will facilitate exchanges based on electronic documents with an advanced level of trust. This development is a significant deliverable of the EU-Egypt Summit of 22 October 2025, demonstrating the shared interest in deepening digital cooperation between the two parties.

The European Union's efforts to achieve technical recognition of electronic signatures or seals created in third countries are ongoing, with Egypt being the first country outside Europe to achieve technical alignment. The EU is expected to continue working with other countries to enhance digital cooperation and facilitate cross-border exchanges.

Key points

• Egypt is the first country outside Europe whose electronic signatures framework is technically aligned with the EU.
• The alignment is expected to simplify cross-border government and business exchanges between the European Union and Egypt.
• The European Commission aims to conclude similar tracks with other third countries in the coming months.