What is a QTSP under eIDAS?

A QTSP (Qualified Trust Service Provider) is an organisation that has been audited and approved by a national supervisory body in an EU member state to issue qualified trust services under the eIDAS Regulation. QTSPs are listed on national Trusted Lists, which are published under Article 22 of eIDAS. Qualified trust services include qualified electronic signatures, qualified electronic seals, and qualified electronic timestamps. Only a QTSP can issue a qualified timestamp that carries the legal presumption of Art. 41(2). That means accurate date and time, admissible in all EU courts without further proof. Swiss Trust Layer partners with a QTSP on the EU Trusted List to issue eIDAS-equivalent qualified electronic timestamps.

How is a QTSP different from a regular electronic signature provider?

Any software company can offer electronic signatures. A click-to-sign service or email confirmation technically constitutes a simple electronic signature under eIDAS Art. 3(10). A QTSP, by contrast, has been subject to conformity assessment by an accredited auditor and listed on an EU national Trusted List. This means QTSP-issued services carry specific legal presumptions under eIDAS: qualified signatures are presumed equivalent to handwritten signatures (Art. 25), qualified seals presumptively protect document integrity (Art. 35), and qualified timestamps presumptively prove the date and time of data (Art. 41). Non-QTSP providers cannot offer these legal presumptions regardless of their technology.

Does Switzerland have its own equivalent of a QTSP?

Yes. Under ZertES (SR 943.03), Switzerland has an accreditation system for Recognised Certification Services (Anerkannte Zertifizierungsdienste / Services de certification reconnus). The Swiss regulatory body (OFCOM/BAKOM) accredits these providers under a framework equivalent to the EU's QTSP regime. Swiss-issued qualified electronic timestamps from a recognised provider carry legal weight under Swiss law. Swiss Trust Layer uses a service provider recognised under both ZertES and eIDAS-equivalent standards, ensuring timestamps are valid in both Switzerland and EU member states.

Where can I find the official EU Trusted List of QTSPs?

The European Commission maintains the official EU Trusted Lists Browser at the European Commission's Trust Services Dashboard. Each EU member state publishes its own national Trusted List, and the Commission aggregates these into a single machine-readable list. You can search by country and service type (electronic signature, seal, timestamp) to find QTSPs for any specific need. For Switzerland, BAKOM (Federal Office of Communications) maintains the list of recognised certification services. Only providers on these lists can issue qualified trust services under eIDAS or ZertES.

What happens if I use a non-QTSP timestamp service for IP protection?

A timestamp from a non-QTSP service is a simple or advanced electronic timestamp. It may be technically accurate but does not carry the legal presumption of eIDAS Art. 41(2). This means that if you rely on it in a court proceeding, the other party can challenge its accuracy and you must prove the timestamp's reliability with additional evidence. Non-QTSP services also vary widely in how they store audit trails and whether they can produce evidence that would survive legal scrutiny. For IP protection, where your goal is to prove creation date in a future dispute, only a QTSP-issued qualified timestamp provides an unchallenged legal presumption.

Standards Compliance

¿Qué es un QTSP? Por qué tu proveedor de firma debe estar en la lista de la UE

Philipp Stuppnik · Co-Founder & IP Strategy

3 de junio de 2026 7 min de lecturaÚltima actualización 8 de septiembre de 2026

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In short

Un Qualified Trust Service Provider (QTSP) es una entidad supervisada por un Estado miembro de la UE e inscrita en la lista de confianza nacional. Solo los QTSP pueden emitir firmas electrónicas cualificadas eIDAS con presunción legal. Esto es lo que debes comprobar.

En abril de 2025, una abogada especializada en propiedad intelectual con sede en Zurich recibio una llamada que no esperaba. Su cliente, una empresa farmaceutica de tamano mediano, habia presentado un acuerdo de licencia ante un tribunal federal aleman. La contraparte impugno la firma digital: era una firma electronica avanzada de una plataforma SaaS, no una firma cualificada de un proveedor inscrito en la lista de confianza de la UE. El juez pidio al abogado del cliente que demostrara la validez de la firma. No pudieron hacerlo. El acuerdo fue declarado inadmisible como documento fundacional.

Esta es la consecuencia practica de una distincion que la mayoria de las empresas aprenden demasiado tarde. No todas las firmas digitales tienen el mismo peso juridico segun el derecho de la UE. Una firma digital creada por una aplicacion de consumo o una herramienta de firma SaaS puede ser criptograficamente valida, pero no goza de ninguna presuncion legal ante los tribunales de la UE si no fue emitida por un Proveedor de Servicios de Confianza Cualificado (QTSP) inscrito en la lista de confianza nacional de un Estado miembro de la UE.

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