eSign Your Freelance Agreement Online with Aadhaar
Protect your work and your payments before you start. Legally valid under the Indian Contract Act 1872. ₹15 per signature.
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What is Freelance Agreement?
A freelance agreement is a project based contract between an individual freelancer and a client that defines the work to be done, the price, the timeline, who owns the final deliverables, and the basic ground rules of the engagement. It is the single most underused document in the Indian freelance economy. Thousands of designers, writers, developers, video editors, illustrators, and photographers do work every month without a signed contract, then struggle to get paid, get credited, or get their IP back when things go wrong.
A good freelance agreement does not need to be long. Three to six pages is usually enough. What matters is that the scope is written in concrete terms, the payment schedule is unambiguous, the delivery timeline is clear, the IP rules are spelled out, and there is a clean termination clause. For creative work, the agreement should also cover revision rounds, file handover format, and portfolio usage rights, because these are the things that cause the most arguments.
Freelance agreements are commercial contracts under the Indian Contract Act, 1872 and are enforceable in civil court. They are fully eligible for Aadhaar eSign under Section 3A of the IT Act, 2000. Freelancers do not need stamp paper, notarisation, or registration for the agreement to be valid. If the freelancer is GST registered, invoices raised against the agreement must comply with the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.
For most Indian freelancers, the biggest value of a signed agreement is not the ability to sue in court, which is usually not worth the time or money for small projects. The real value is the psychological effect on the client: once a contract is signed, clients pay on time more reliably, scope creep slows down, and disputes get resolved faster because both sides have something written to point to.
Sign your freelance agreement in 3 simple steps
No printing. No scanning. Just drop your PDF and sign.
Draft your freelance agreement
Include scope, fees, timeline, revision limits, and IP terms. Save the final version as a PDF.
Upload and add both parties
Drop the PDF into SignSetu. Enter your own and the client's name and email as signers.
Both sides sign with Aadhaar OTP
You and the client independently sign via Aadhaar OTP. Once both signatures are captured, the final PDF lands in both inboxes.
Who uses SignSetu for freelance agreements?
Real scenarios where Aadhaar eSign saves days of coordination.
Designers and illustrators
Protect your IP, cap revision rounds, and lock in payment terms before you start a logo, brand, or illustration project.
Content writers and editors
Define deliverable count, word count, and payment schedule for ghostwriting, blog, or long form content engagements.
Independent developers
Set clear scope, milestones, and source code handover terms for freelance software and web projects.
Video editors and creators
Lock in per video pricing, turnaround time, revision limits, and credit usage before starting a client project.
Essential clauses in a freelance agreement
Make sure your freelance agreement includes these clauses before you sign.
- Parties with full legal names, addresses, and contact details
- Scope of work with concrete deliverables and out of scope items
- Project timeline with start date, milestones, and final delivery date
- Total fee, payment schedule, and advance or booking amount
- Number of revision rounds included and cost of extra revisions
- IP ownership, assignment, or licence terms on the final deliverables
- File handover format and delivery method
- Confidentiality obligations on both sides
- Termination clause with notice period and kill fee if applicable
- Portfolio, credit, and usage rights for the freelancer
- Governing law and dispute resolution mechanism
Common mistakes to avoid
Legal validity of an eSigned freelance agreement
Freelance agreements are commercial contracts enforceable under the Indian Contract Act, 1872. They require the same five essential elements as any other contract: a valid offer, acceptance, lawful consideration, free consent, and a lawful object. These are almost always present in a straightforward freelance engagement. Aadhaar eSign is recognised under Section 3A of the Information Technology Act, 2000, which gives a digital signature issued through a licensed eSign service provider the same legal effect as a handwritten signature. That means a freelance agreement signed via Aadhaar OTP is just as enforceable as one signed with a pen. Freelance agreements do not require stamp paper for basic enforceability, and they do not need notarisation or registration. Some freelancers voluntarily use 100 rupees stamp paper on higher value agreements for extra comfort, but this is not a legal requirement. If the freelancer is registered under GST, tax invoices raised against the agreement must comply with the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, with the correct HSN or SAC code, place of supply, and GST rate. For creative work involving copyright, the IP assignment or licensing clause should satisfy Section 19 of the Copyright Act, 1957, which specifically requires assignments of copyright to be in writing and signed by the assignor. An Aadhaar eSign meets this writing and signature requirement. Freelancers should note that a freelance agreement is an independent contractor arrangement, not an employment contract, and does not create any obligation to deduct TDS as salary or to pay PF, ESI, or gratuity.
Reference: Indian Contract Act 1872 + Section 3A, IT Act 2000
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Every signature is processed via eMudhra, a CCA-licensed eSign Service Provider (ESP) authorized under the IT Act, 2000.
Important note
This page is educational and not legal advice. For complex or high value freelance engagements, have a lawyer review your contract before signing. GST obligations under the CGST Act, 2017 are separate and still apply to any invoices you raise.
Transparent, pay-as-you-go pricing
Pay only for what you sign. No subscription. No minimums.
Freelancer + client = ₹30
See full pricing detailsFrequently asked questions
Everything about eSigning your freelance agreement in India.
Is an eSigned freelance agreement legally binding in India?
Do I need to be GST registered to sign a freelance agreement?
Should I ask for an advance payment?
Who owns the IP in a freelance project?
Can I use the work in my portfolio after delivery?
What if the client cancels the project halfway?
Can international clients sign this agreement via Aadhaar?
Related document guides
Other documents you can eSign with Aadhaar on SignSetu.
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