For electronic signatures, Linear uses the Signicat signature service, one of the largest and most trusted providers in the Nordic countries. Signicat also complies with the requirements of the European Union’s eIDAS regulation (Electronic Identification, Authentication and Trust Services), meaning it is fully eIDAS‑approved.
At the moment, Linear enables electronic signing through Signicat for Finnish and Estonian clients. When you create a new client or edit an existing client’s information, select the correct option in the Electronic identification country field for authentication and signing.
After the documents have been signed, they receive a digital seal, which is used to verify the electronic signature.
Note: The seals can only be verified on the electronically archived document. A printed copy cannot be reliably validated. Therefore, if a third party (e.g., a bank) needs to check the electronically signed document, we recommend providing it in electronic format.
Instructions for signing a document in Signicat
In Signicat, authentication for signing documents works with all Finnish online banking credentials as well as Mobile ID. The signer first logs in to Signicat using their credentials, then reviews the documents, and finally approves them with their signature once everything is in order.
Electronic signing works step by step as follows:
- The signer receives an email invitation to sign documents. The invitation contains a link to Signicat. The agent may also send this link via text message or WhatsApp if they have copied it from Linear and pasted it into a separate message for the customer.
- The signer opens the link on their computer or smart device and authenticates in Signicat. A list of available authentication methods is shown on the screen, from which the signer selects the one that suits them:
Note: If authentication fails, you can find the most common reasons here.
3. After authentication, the task view opens. This view lists the documents waiting to be signed.
Note: At this stage, nothing is signed or approved yet — the signer is only browsing the documents.
4. Next, the signer can review the documents and their attachments one by one. In this view, the user can:
- Switch between documents by clicking the document name at the top of the screen or by using the arrows on the right and left edges.
- Use the icons at the bottom of the screen to:
- zoom in or out
- expand the document to full screen
- download the document to their device
- exit and log out safely without approving anything (the same link can be used later to return and sign)
- The “check” mark in front of a document name (at the top) means that the document has been reviewed. Documents cannot be signed until each document (if there are several) has been viewed at least once, and all of them show a check mark.
(5. If the signer is inactive for several minutes, an automatic timeout occurs. This prevents unauthorized access to the documents.)
6. When all documents have been reviewed and the signer wishes to proceed, they can click the Sign documents button located either in the top right corner or on the right side of the screen.
Note: If there is only one document to sign, the Sign button appears at the bottom of the screen.
7. A signature confirmation screen will appear, showing once again the list of documents to be signed. Only after the signer checks the box confirming they have reviewed and want to approve the documents does the Sign documents button become active. The digital signatures are created only after the signer clicks this button.
Note: It is important to understand that the signature applies to all documents listed. If there are documents the signer does not want to sign, they must contact the agent who created the agreement.
8. When all parties to the agreement (if multiple) have signed the documents, the signers will receive an email notification confirming that the documents have been signed.