Digital Signature: Step-by-Step Guide to Activation

Step 1 - Set up your data in the Autenticacao.gov.pt

The first step is to prepare the conditions for InvoiceXpress to be able to use your Digital Signature.

For this you must:

Ensure that you have access to your Digital Mobile Key (CMD) or a Citizen Card reader.
Ensure that there is no previously created certificate for InvoiceXpress in the Autenticacao.gov.pt portal
Correctly set up professional attributes in Autenticacao.gov.pt. Here's how to do it.

Digital Signature with Digital Mobile Key

With the Digital Mobile Key (DMK) you can sign digital documents with the same validity as a hand-held signature. Digital Digital Key digital signature is certified by European Union Regulation 910/2014.

To sign documents with Digital Mobile Key you must:

Enable DMK
Enable DMK digital signature
Have a signature PIN code (which may be different from the DMK PIN code)

Digital Signature with Citizen Card

The activation of the subscription with the Citizen Card presents the same legal templates as the Digital Mobile Key.

To sign with Citizen Card, you’re required to:

have the card's digital signature enabled
have a smartcard card reader
have a signature PIN code

Associate Professional Attributes

Before you can use a Digital Signature, you must have associated business attributes of a company manager, administrator, or manager, and the ability to issue invoice signatures. These attributes are associated through SCAP (Professional Attribute Certification System).

To do this you must access this page and activate your professional attributes for the company for which you will activate the Digital Signature.

Step 2 - Set up your InvoiceXpress account

After completing the first step, it's time to activate the digital signature in InvoiceXpress. The process is simple:

1️⃣ Access the digital signature setup page to start the process. Go to Preferences → State Communication, select the "QualifiedDigital Signature" option.

2️⃣ Accept the terms and conditions on that page and click "Manage subscription in Autenticacao.gov". By agreeing to the terms and conditions, you authorize InvoiceXpress to access the private key of your Digital Signature in order to be able to sign the documents you will issue. Thus, it ensures that the PDF file is not changed by the recipient, and it is his responsibility to verify the data that will appear in the issued documents.

3️⃣ You will be redirected to the configuration page autenticacao.gov, and you must follow the following steps:

Select the authentication medium you want to use (Citizen card or digital mobile key) and click "Continue".

If you use the Digital Mobile Key, you will need to enter your mobile phone number and your digital mobile key pin. A text message will be sent with a confirmation code that you will need to validate before proceeding.
Validate your credentials and choose "Authorize" to complete your authentication.

4️⃣ A code is sent via text message to the indicated phone number to validate authentication. Enter the security code and click "Confirm".

5️⃣ You will be redirected to the InvoiceXpress environment and must wait until InvoiceXpress obtains your validation code and activates your signature. This process may take a few seconds.

If you followed Step 1 of the configuration in the Autenticacao.gov portal, the Digital Signature will be successfully activated and can now be used.

If you see an error message during connection, follow these steps.

6️⃣ All set!

Whenever you generate a PDF you can check it’s signed