Registered Email vs. Burofax: Legal, Economic, and Practical Comparison

For many years, the burofax was the most widely used method to send legally valid notifications — such as claims, demands, or contractual terminations. Today, registered email offers the same evidentiary power with a major advantage: it’s digital, immediate, and far more cost-effective.

In this article, we compare both methods — their legal validity, cost, and efficiency — to understand why registered email has become the preferred choice for companies, lawyers, and administrators.

What Is a Burofax?

A burofax is a postal delivery service that allows senders to prove the sending and delivery of a physical document. Traditionally managed by postal operators such as Correos, its value lies in the certification of both the content and the time of delivery.

The recipient receives a paper copy of the document, and the sender obtains a sealed receipt that can be used as evidence before a court.

Advantages:

• Guarantees personal delivery to the recipient or their representative.
• A well-established and legally recognized method in Spain.

Disadvantages:

• High cost (typically €25–€40 per delivery, depending on pages and destination).
• Slow delivery times and dependence on office hours.
• Requires printing, handling, and physical delivery.
• Incompatible with digital formats such as video or multimedia content.
• Difficult to automate or integrate with digital workflows.

What Is Registered Email?

Registered email is the natural digital evolution of the burofax.

It allows users to send electronic communications with full legal validity, providing verifiable evidence of the origin, content, timestamp, and delivery of each message.

With eEvidence, the system generates a digitally signed electronic document — the eEvid — which serves as admissible proof of sending and delivery.

Advantages:

• Same evidentiary value as a burofax, recognized by case law.
• Instant delivery, available 24/7 and without geographic limits.
• Cost per message under €1 (depending on plan or volume).
• Fully automatable and integrable with CRM, ERP, or API.
• Comprehensive technical evidence (hash, timestamp, server logs).

The EU eIDAS Regulation (910/2014) recognizes registered email as part of the Electronic Registered Delivery Services (ERDS) framework, which cannot be denied legal effect solely because it is electronic.

Practical Comparison: Burofax vs. Registered Email

Legal Validity: Equal Before the Courts

Both the burofax and registered email have full legal validity when used to provide reliable evidence of a communication — as long as they guarantee:

1. The sender’s identity.
2. The integrity of the content.
3. Delivery or availability to the recipient.

Spanish courts have repeatedly recognized the effectiveness of registered email. Example: the Judgment of the Madrid Court of Appeal (SAP 18026/2024, December 23, 2024) expressly confirms its evidentiary validity within the framework of Law 1/2025 (MASC).

In other words, legal validity does not depend on the medium, but on the ability to prove with certainty what was sent, to whom, and when.

When to Choose One or the Other

Burofax:

• Extremely formal notifications or communications to recipients without digital access.
• Deliveries requiring physical documentation.

Registered email:

• Business communications, claims, renewals, or contract terminations.
• Commercial relationships, legal notices, or digital procedures.
• Automated or high-volume communications.

In practice, registered email covers 95% of the situations where burofax used to be employed, providing the same legal certainty with much greater efficiency.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Does registered email have the same legal value as a burofax?

Yes. Both the eIDAS Regulation and Spanish case law recognize that Electronic Registered Delivery Services (ERDS) have legal effects equivalent to certified physical notifications.

Can a recipient refuse a registered email?

No. As with a burofax, legal proof does not depend on whether the recipient opens the message, but on whether it was made available in their email server.

Can registered email be used for debt collection?

Yes. It is a legally valid method for pre-litigation demands or out-of-court claims.

Can I send a registered email through Outlook or Gmail?

Yes. With eEvidence, you can send directly from your regular mailbox or automate deliveries via API.

Conclusion

Registered email represents the natural evolution of the burofax: it offers the same legal validity with a dramatically lower cost, instant delivery, and full digital traceability.

In an environment where efficiency and legal security are essential, eEvidence enables businesses to communicate, claim, and notify with the same guarantees as a burofax — but with the agility of the digital era.