Verify the authenticity of an electronic edition of the Official Journal

As of 1 July 2013 only the electronic edition of the Official Journal of the European Union (the e-OJ) is authentic and produces legal effects (see Council Regulation (EU) No 216/2013).

Paper versions no longer have any legal value, except for cases where – due to an unforeseen and exceptional disruption of the Publications Office's IT systems – the e-OJ cannot be published. Find paper versions of the Official Journal with legal effect.

The e-OJ bears an electronic signature, which ensures the authenticity, integrity and inalterability of the electronic edition.

How to verify authenticity

— You can verify the electronic signature and authentic character of the e-OJ using the CheckLex​​ application or any third-party verification application that complies with the set standards. If this verification succeeds, you are guaranteed that:

• the electronic edition is authentic;
• it has not been changed since the date of its signature.

Verification requires the following steps:

• Download the PDF version of the e-OJ and its signature file
• Save them to your computer or device
• Upload the 2 files to CheckLex, by clicking the Select document and Select Associated Signature buttons. Make sure you are uploading the right pair of files, otherwise the verification will fail.
• Click the Verify Signature button. Verification takes only a couple of seconds.

If the verification fails, you will get an error message, informing you what went wrong.

— In some cases, when no e-signature is shown as a separate file, the signature is directly part of the PDF file. In those cases, verification can be performed by using any third-party verification application that complies with the set standards.

See more about:

• CheckLex - on the About page​​ and the FAQ​​ .
• The signature policy for the e-OJ used by the Publications Office.
• The qualified certificates that the e-signatures are based on.