Wills and testamentary documents
Wills, codicils and related instruments are among the most commonly excluded documents. Many jurisdictions require ink together with witnesses present at signing, and several have their own additional formalities.
What is a wet signature?
A wet signature is a signature you make by hand, in ink, on a physical document. The name comes from the ink being wet at the moment the pen leaves the page. It is the oldest way of signing still in daily use, and for a small group of documents it is still the form that is asked for.
Definition
Where the term wet signature comes from
For most of the history of signing, there was only one kind of signature, so nobody needed a word for it. You took a pen, you wrote your name on the page, and the ink sat wet for a second or two before it dried. That small physical detail is the whole origin of the phrase. A wet ink signature is ink, applied by hand, to paper.
The term only became useful once signing moved onto screens and people needed a way to say which kind they meant. Today it usually turns up in a request. If a lender, a registry or a counterparty asks for an original wet signature, they are asking for the piece of paper that a person actually signed, rather than a file or a printout of a signed file.
- Applied by handA person forms the signature themselves with a pen, on the document itself.
- Lives on paperThe signature and the page it sits on are one physical object.
- Has one originalAnything else is a copy of it, however good the scan or the photocopy.
- Often signed in personWhich is why witnessing and notarisation grew up around it.
Wet signature and electronic signature, side by side
Two ways of doing the same job, with different properties. Neither one is the better instrument in the abstract. What matters is the document in front of you and the rules that apply to it.
| Property | Wet ink signature | Electronic signature |
|---|---|---|
| How it is executed | A person signs the paper by hand with a pen, sometimes in front of a witness or a notary where the document calls for one. | A person draws, types or uploads a signature in a browser or an app, and their intent to sign is recorded at the same moment. |
| How it is stored | As a physical original that has to be filed, kept safe and sometimes couriered. Scans and photocopies are copies of it. | As a file, held with the record of the signing event. Every copy is identical to the one everybody else holds. |
| How it is proved later | Usually through the document itself, the people who were present, and where it is genuinely disputed, handwriting evidence. | Usually through the audit record captured at signing: timestamps, consent, signer details and a recorded document hash on the file. |
| Turnaround | Set by distance. Printing, posting or meeting in person can add days, and more when several people have to sign in turn. | Usually minutes. The signer can be anywhere with a browser, and routing to several people happens automatically. |
| Formality | Carries a real sense of ceremony. That weight is part of why some formal documents still call for ink. | Carries no physical ceremony, so where the law wants a formal act, an extra step may still be required. |
When a wet signature is still required
This is the question most people arrive with. In many places a small set of documents still calls for ink, a witness, a notary or some other added formality. The examples below are the ones that come up most often. They are not a complete list, and the rules differ widely, so treat them as a prompt to check rather than an answer.
Some property deeds and land transfers
Land registries set their own rules. Some accept electronic execution, others still want an ink signed deed, and some accept one but not the other depending on the transaction.
Powers of attorney in some jurisdictions
Treatment varies a great deal. Some places allow electronic execution, others require ink, witnesses, a prescribed form of wording, or registration before the document has effect.
Anything needing a notary or a witness
Where a document has to be notarised or witnessed, the formality sits alongside the signature. Remote and electronic notarisation exists in a growing number of places, but availability is uneven, so check what is accepted where the document will be used.
Certain court filings
Many courts accept electronic filing as standard, and some still require an ink signed original for particular documents or want the original produced later. Court and registry rules are the place to look.
Some family law papers
Adoption, divorce and similar filings often carry extra formality because of what is at stake. Requirements vary by court and by jurisdiction, and they are worth confirming before anything is signed.
General information, not legal advice. Requirements differ by country, state, province, court and document type, and they change over time. Check the requirements that apply to your document, and take professional advice where the document matters.
The legal picture
When an electronic signature is fine
For the great majority of commercial agreements, an electronic signature is accepted and enforceable. The main frameworks are built on a simple idea: a signature or a record should not be denied legal effect simply because it is electronic.
In practice that covers the paperwork most businesses actually run on. Sales agreements, order forms, statements of work, non disclosure agreements, service contracts, offer letters, renewals, consent forms and the long tail of internal approvals are all routinely signed electronically. The exclusions each framework sets out are narrow, and they overlap closely with the documents in the section above.
The frameworks people ask about
- ESIGN Act, United StatesFederal law giving electronic signatures and records legal effect in interstate and foreign commerce, with a defined set of exclusions.
- UETA, United StatesThe state level counterpart, adopted in nearly every state, covering electronic signatures and records in transactions between consenting parties.
- eIDAS, European UnionA single regulation across member states that recognises electronic signatures and sets out tiers carrying different evidential weight.
Each framework has its own exclusions and its own conditions, and other countries have their own rules again. Where a document is unusual or high value, confirm the position that applies to you.
How to bring wet signed documents into a digital workflow
Ink and digital filing are not in conflict. When a document has to be signed in wet ink, the paper stays the record and the scan becomes the copy everybody works from.
Sign in wet ink
Sign the paper copy
Sign the document by hand in the ordinary way, with whatever witness or notary the document calls for. Use a pen that will not smudge or fade, and sign every page the document asks you to initial.
Scan it properly
Make a clean digital copy
Scan flat and square at a readable resolution, in colour where the ink, a seal or a stamp carries meaning. Save it as a PDF with a name that says what it is and when it was signed. A phone photo works at a push, but a proper scan reads better and files better.
Keep the original
Store the paper safely
For a document that needed ink, the paper is usually the thing that counts. Keep it somewhere durable and recorded, note where it is stored, and treat the scan as the working reference rather than a replacement for it.
Putting a wet signature on a PDF
This is a common search, and it usually means one of two different things. The first is printing the PDF, signing it by hand and scanning it back, which produces a scan of a genuinely wet signed document while the paper stays the original. The second is placing an image of your handwriting into the file, which never involves ink at all: it is an ordinary electronic signature that happens to look handwritten, and it is treated as one. Both are useful. It is worth knowing which one has been asked for before you start.
For everything that does not need ink
Most agreements never needed paper in the first place. SignSecure handles those end to end, and leaves the documents that call for a wet signature to the pen.
Wet signature questions
What is a wet signature?
A wet signature is a signature made by hand, in ink, on a physical document. The name comes from the ink being wet at the moment of signing. It is also called a wet ink signature.
Is a wet signature more legally valid than an electronic signature?
Not as a general rule. In many jurisdictions an electronic signature carries the same legal effect as ink for most agreements, under frameworks such as the ESIGN Act and UETA in the United States and eIDAS in the European Union. A narrow set of documents still calls for ink or added formality, and those requirements vary by jurisdiction and document type.
What is an original wet signature?
It is the physical copy that a person actually signed by hand. A scan or a photocopy of it is a copy rather than the original. When someone asks for an original wet signature, they usually want the paper itself sent to them.
Can I put a wet signature on a PDF?
You can print the PDF, sign it in wet ink and scan it back, which gives you a scan of a wet signed document. You can also place an image of your handwriting into the file, which is an electronic signature that happens to look handwritten. The two are different things, so it is worth being clear which one has been asked for.
Do wet signed documents need to be witnessed?
Some do and many do not. Witnessing and notarisation are separate requirements from the ink itself, and whether they apply depends on the document and the jurisdiction. Check the requirements that apply to your document before it is signed.
Which documents commonly still need to be signed in wet ink?
Examples commonly cited include wills and other testamentary documents, some property deeds and land transfers, powers of attorney in some jurisdictions, certain court filings, documents that need a notary or a witness, and some family law papers. The list differs from place to place, so confirm locally rather than relying on any general list.
Keep reading
- Are electronic signatures legally binding?ESIGN, UETA and eIDAS, and the evidence every send carries.
- How to create an electronic signatureDraw it, type it or upload it, and reuse it on everything after that.
- Electronic signature softwareTemplates, reusable fields, bulk send, audit trails and the open API.
- Sign a PDF onlineUpload, place a signature and download it, straight from the browser.
Keep the pen for the documents that need it.
Send everything else for signature in a couple of minutes. Free to try, no card needed.