Have you checked the validity of your Digital Signature Certificate (DSC) yet?
The filing season for FY 2018-19 is on and you will require a valid Class 2 DSC for eFiling of:
- Income Tax returns
- MCA returns
- GST returns
What is a Digital Signature Certificate (DSC)?
A digital signature is an electronic method of signing an electronic document.
A Digital Signature Certificate (DSC) is a computer-based record that has the name and address of the subscriber as well as the details of the Certifying Authority issuing it. A DSC is an electronic equivalent of physical or paper certificates. It can serve as proof of identity, as a means to access specific information or services on the Internet and as a method to sign certain documents (such as eForms) digitally.
A DSC is a legal document and admissible in a Court of Law as per the provisions of the IT Act, 2000.
There are 3 main types of DSCs:
- Class 1 DSC: Here the identity of a person is verified against a trusted, pre-verified database. It provides a basic level of assurance in situations where there are some risks and consequences of data compromise but they are not very significant.
- Class 2 DSC: Here the identity of a person is verified against a trusted, pre-verified database. It is relevant to situations where there is a moderate risk of data compromise.
- Class 3 DSC: This is a high-assurance certificate where the person needs to present himself to a Certifying Authority (CA) and prove his identity. It is relevant when there are major threats to data or serious consequences to potential security failures.
Who issues a DSC? How much does a DSC cost?
Only a licensed Certifying Authority (CA), i.e. a person or company that has been granted a license under Section 24 of the Indian IT-Act 2000, can issue a DSC.
In general, a CA would take three to seven working days to issue a DSC (paper application). For Aadhaar Holders, a DSC may be issued by some CAs on the same day based on eKYC (as long as certain terms and conditions are fulfilled).
The cost of a DSC varies with the issuing CA.
What is the process for obtaining a DSC?
To obtain a DSC, you can either:
- Directly approach a CA with original supporting documents and self-attested copies
OR
- Through Aadhar eKYC based authentication (if that is linked to your mobile number and PAN)
What is the validity period of a DSC?
Certifying Authorities are authorised to issue Digital Signature Certificates with a validity of one or two years.
Is your DSC about to expire? Contact MyDSC.net – we can help!
We are the leading provider of Digital Signature Certificates across India. We provide DSCs of Sify, Ncode, eMudhra for Class 2, CLass3, DGFT, etc. We have a dedicated team to process and support DSC requests so you are ensured of great prices and superb customer service every time. Contact Us