Electronic signatures in hunting: status and outlook for driven hunt logbooks

In France, a qualified electronic signature has the legal effect of a handwritten signature, under European regulation eIDAS². It does not, however, replace the driven hunt logbook. Where the departmental hunting management plan (SDGC) requires one, the logbook issued by the federation, filled in and signed on site by the participants, is the only valid document⁶⁷.

Sunday, 7.45 am, at the meeting point. A hunter arrives late and offers to sign “on the phone, like for the lease”. The hunt leader hesitates: does an electronic signature count on a driven hunt logbook? Two texts answer the question, and they deal with different things: a European regulation on signatures, and the departmental plan that governs the driven hunt.

Everything below falls under French law: the legal status of the electronic signature, the origin of the logbook requirement, the digital tools already accepted by the hunting authorities, and what would need to change for an electronic logbook. This article was updated on 13 October 2026, with all figures and cited texts verified at source.

Does an electronic signature have the same legal value as a handwritten one?

Yes, at the qualified level. European regulation no. 910/2014, known as “eIDAS”, adopted on 23 July 2014, governs electronic signatures across the European Union¹. According to ANSSI (the French national cybersecurity agency), a qualified electronic signature “has a legal effect equivalent to that of a handwritten signature”².

Many sources refer to three levels. ANSSI lists four¹:

1. the “simple” signature;
2. the advanced signature;
3. the advanced signature based on a qualified certificate;
4. the qualified signature.

The regulation also sets out a principle of non-discrimination. The legal effect of an electronic signature and its admissibility as evidence in legal proceedings “may not be denied solely on the grounds” that it is in electronic form or that it is not qualified².

An advanced signature requires an electronic signature certificate. Qualified certificates are issued by qualified trust service providers, and ANSSI publishes the list: ChamberSign France, Certigna, Universign and Docusign France are among them³. ANSSI does not issue certificates itself³.

The regulation does not specify which level to use for each document. ANSSI recommends a risk analysis and points out that “specific texts may set a minimum signature level” for certain uses¹. For the driven hunt logbook, no such text has been found.

Is the driven hunt logbook compulsory, and since when?

In France, the driven hunt logbook is not required by any national law. It becomes compulsory when the departmental hunting management plan (schema departemental de gestion cynegetique, or SDGC) of your department requires it. The order published in the Journal officiel (Official Gazette) on 5 October 2020 made three measures compulsory: fluorescent clothing during collective big game hunts, signposting of hunts on public roads, and a safety refresher course every 10 years⁴. The logbook is not among them.

The Code de l’environnement (Environmental Code) gives this power to the department. The SDGC is drawn up for a renewable six-year period by the departmental hunting federation, then approved by the prefect. It must include measures relating to the safety of hunters and non-hunters. It is binding on hunters and hunting societies, and breaches are punishable by fines ranging from first to fourth class⁵.

“Since when?” therefore depends on your department: since the SDGC that introduced the logbook requirement came into force. Two published examples:

• in the Gard, the federation states that the SDGC makes the driven hunt logbook compulsory for big game and fox driven hunts⁶;
• in the Pyrenees-Atlantiques, the driven hunt logbook “must be filled in and signed by all participants, using the model” provided by the federation⁷.

For the logbook contents and which template to use, see our guide to the driven hunt logbook in PDF.

Why does the electronic signature not replace the driven hunt logbook?

Because the issue is the document, not the signature’s legal standing. Where the SDGC requires the logbook, it designates the federation’s logbook. An electronic signature, even a qualified one, applied to a different file does not make that file the official logbook.

The federations describe a physical object that circulates. In the Gard, the logbook is issued at the start of each season by the federation to the holder of the hunting rights, and must be returned at the close of the season⁶. The hunt leader records the participants before the start, and “any hunter not registered in the logbook before the driven hunt may not take part”⁶. In the Pyrenees-Atlantiques, hunters read and countersign the SDGC 2026-2032 safety instructions at the start of the season⁷.

In short, the electronic signature is not rejected on grounds of format. It is simply beside the point while the required medium remains a paper logbook supplied by the federation. The day a federation offers an electronic logbook, the question of the signature level will arise. Not before.

The hunt leader also has a practical reason to keep the paper signed on site. The logbook proves that each participant was registered and received the safety instructions before setting off. For the rules to cover, read our driven hunt safety instructions.

Which digital tools are already accepted alongside the logbook?

ChassAdapt, the free app from the Fédération nationale des chasseurs (FNC, the national hunting federation), is the official digital tool for compulsory harvest declarations⁸. Developed in 2018, it has accepted all species since 2023 and works even without mobile coverage⁸. Each declaration generates a QR code to present to sworn officers during an inspection⁸.

Paper has not gone away, though. The table below summarises the rules published by the FNC and two departmental federations.

The FNC itself states: “ChassAdapt does not always replace compulsory declarations”⁸. Even the national tool coexists with the paper logbook. The driven hunt logbook follows the same logic.

Mes Chasses complements the logbook without replacing it. The app manages online invitations, stands and the participant list. The digital driven hunt logbook and harvest plan are generated from the driven hunt events, avoiding double entry. For the day itself, the printable driven hunt sheet is free and requires no account: stands, beaters, hunt leader, game tally, and for each participant the licence, insurance and a signature box. It prepares the day and does not replace the logbook required by your SDGC. To compare tools, read our article on digital hunting and driven hunts.

What would be needed for a driven hunt logbook with electronic signatures?

First, the department’s SDGC would need to allow an electronic driven hunt logbook and electronic signatures from participants. The plan is drawn up for six years, prepared by the federation in consultation with the chambre d’agriculture (chamber of agriculture), private rural property owners and forestry interests, then approved by the prefect⁵. A revision is the right time to raise the question. In the Pyrenees-Atlantiques, the current plan covers 2026-2032⁷.

Several practical questions would also need answers:

1. The signature level required, among the four levels of the eIDAS regulation¹. A qualified certificate for every hunter, beater and companion would be difficult to obtain.
2. The timing of the signature: before setting off, as for participant registration in the Gard⁶.
3. Offline data entry, which ChassAdapt has already solved for harvest declarations⁸.
4. Returning the logbook to the federation at the end of the season, which would become a file transfer.
5. Long-term preservation of evidence. ANSSI mentions electronic archiving with evidential value and counter-signing to extend the validity of a signature¹.

If you sit on your federation’s general assembly, that is the right place to raise it when the SDGC comes up for revision. In the meantime, keep the paper logbook and prepare the day in advance.

Conclusion

A qualified electronic signature has the same legal value as a handwritten signature in France. The driven hunt logbook, however, remains in practice a paper document: where the SDGC requires it, the federation’s logbook is what counts, signed on site by the participants. Nothing in principle prohibits an electronic signature on a driven hunt logbook, but no federation consulted for this update offers an electronic logbook.

For your next driven hunt, three steps are enough. Open the safety chapter of your department’s SDGC and check what it says about the logbook. Ask your federation for this season’s template. And prepare the day with the free Mes Chasses driven hunt sheet: names, stands and instructions are ready before the morning safety briefing, leaving only the logbook to sign.

If your federation ever opens the door to an electronic logbook, the SDGC rules and the chosen electronic signature level will determine what is valid. Until then, the pen stays in the hunt leader’s pocket.

References