In this rising season of LLP Annual Filings, the most crucial element that is proving to be of utmost importance is Digital Signature Certificate of Designated Partners. Varied situations, along with varied time periods due to be taken care of, is giving rise to digital signature certificates being expired, need to renew the expired digital signatures, added with the requirement whether both the designated partners need to renew the digital signatures, since in a company only one director is required to do the needful. To address the aforesaid issue, let us discuss the detailed bits of Digital Signature Certificate of Designated Partners – What is a Digital Signature Certificate?  Digital Signature Certificates (DSC) are the digital equivalent of physical or paper certificates. To provide you with some examples of physical certificates are drivers licenses, passports or membership cards. Certificates serve as proof of identity of an individual for a certain purpose; for example, a drivers license identifies someone who can legally drive in a particular country. Likewise, a digital certificate can be presented electronically to access information or services on the Internet, to prove your identity, or to sign certain documents digitally. For what other purposes I can use Digital Signature Certificates for? The various uses of DSCs runs as below : a) Your Digital Signature Certificate could be used to allow you to access membership-based web sites automatically without entering a user name and password. It can allow others to verify your “signed” e-mail or other electronic documents, assuring your intended reader(s) that you are the genuine author of the documents, and that the content has not been corrupted or tampered with in any way. b) Digital Signature Certificates enables others to send private messages to you: anyone else who gets his/her hands on a message meant for you will not be able to read it. c) For filings your income tax returns. d) For applying Importer exporter code number. e) For application of DIN – Director Identification Number f) For certifying any form of the company in which such person is a director / managing director. g) For certifying any form of the LLP in which such person is a designated partner. (Digital Signature Certificate of Designated Partners) Why is Digital Signature Certificate (DSC) required for Limited Liability Partnerships ? Like physical documents are signed manually, electronic documents, for example e-forms are required to be signed digitally using a Digital Signature Certificate. It can allow others to verify your “signed” electronic documents, assuring your intended reader(s) that you are the genuine author of the documents, and that the content has not been corrupted or tampered with in any way. Is LLP required to obtain a Digital Signature Certificate in its own name for efiling? Digital Signature Certificate (DSC) is not required by LLP but by individuals. The Designated Partner of LLP, signing on behalf of the LLP will require a DSC. Are all Designated Partners of a company required to obtain DSC? Yes, all the Designated Partners, who will be the authorized signatories of the LLP, for the e-filing purpose, are required to obtain a DSC. One of the designated partner’s DSC will be required for certification of the Annual Return, and the other DSC for verification purpose. Is Designated Partner Identification Number (DPIN) a pre-requisite to apply for DSC? No. The question of DPIN arises once the DSC is in place. How is a Digital Signature affixed to an e-form? Click the Digital Signature field in the e-form. The system will prompt you to sign the eform through a digital signature that is stored on your portable media. Can I do e-filing of documents if I do not possess a DSC? No. It is mandatory to have a valid digital signature certificate(DSC) for e-filing the forms on the LLP portal. How can I carry a Digital Signatures Certificate to the Physical Front Office (PFO)? You can carry your Digital Signature in a portable media, namely Smart Card/ USB Drive as provided by the Certifying Authority. What safety precautions should one take while using a Digital Signature? You should keep the media carrying your digital signature safely and not disclose your password to anybody. What is the difference between digital signatures and electronic signatures? Digital signatures are based on Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and are a result of a cryptographic operation that guarantees signer authenticity, data integrity and non-repudiation of signed documents. The digital signature cannot be copied, tampered or altered. In addition, because they are based on standard PKI technology, signatures made within one application (e.g. Microsoft Word, Adobe PDF) can be validated by others using the same applications. On the other hand, an electronic signature is a proprietary format (there is no standard for electronic signatures) that is an electronic data, such as a digitized image of a handwritten signature, a symbol, voiceprint, etc., that identifies the author(s) of an electronic message. Electronic signatures are vulnerable to copying and tampering, making forgery easy. In many cases, they are not legally binding and will require proprietary software to validate the signature. What are the different types of Digital Signature Certificates? The different types of Digital Signature Certificates are: Class 1: Generally used for demo purpose, does not have high security features. Class 2: Here, the identity of a person is verified against a trusted, pre-verified database. Class 3: This is the highest level where the person needs to present himself or herself in front of a Registration Authority (RA) and prove his/ her identity. What type of Digital Signature Certificate (DSC) is to be obtained for eFiling on the MCA Portal? DSC of Class 2 and Class 3 category issued by a licensed Certifying Authority (CA) needs to be obtained for efiling on the MCA portal. How much time does Taxmantra take to issue a DSC? The time taken to issue a DSC may vary from 8 to 12 working hours. What is the validity period of a Digital Signature Certificate? The Certifying Authorities are authorized to issue a Digital Signature Certificate with a validity of one or two years. What is the legal status of a Digital Signature? Digital Signatures are legally admissible in a Court of Law,  as provided under the provisions of Information Technology Act 2000. Can I procure Digital Signatures from outside India? No, only Digital Signatures issued by companies  in India which has been authorized by Controller of Certifying Authority of India is acceptable. What are the documents which are required to be submitted for obtaining Digital Signature Certificates? Following documents are required:

• Indian National Identity Proof  
• Present Residential Proofs (Voter ID, Passport, Driving License, etc)
• One JPEG Photo

We have a dedicated corporate law team comprising of Chartered Accountants, Company Secretaries and Corporate Law Experts to handle queries stretching from company incorporation to liquidation, to say the least. Our domain expertise captures queries related to Limited Liability Partnerships, Partnership businesses and Sole Proprietary concerns and regarding any provision of Companies Act, 1956and LLP Act, 2008. Also, we provide instant Digital Signature Certificate of Designated Partners, which is really helping designated partners of LLPs whose ROC filings are still due. You may also like the following relevant topics : Annual Compliances of LLP Can Winding Up LLP save penalty? Due Date of LLP Annual Filings