Are electronic signatures valid on a US services agreement?

Yes for ordinary commercial contracts. Under 15 U.S.C. § 7001(a), a signature, contract or record relating to a transaction in or affecting interstate commerce may not be denied legal effect solely because it is electronic. Section 7003(a) removes wills, codicils, testamentary trusts, family law matters and most of the Uniform Commercial Code from that protection, and § 7003(b) removes court documents and certain statutory notices.

Does a US services agreement have to be in writing?

Only where the statute of frauds bites. New York General Obligations Law § 5-701(a)(1) voids an agreement that by its terms cannot be performed within one year unless it is in writing and subscribed by the party to be charged, and Texas Business and Commerce Code § 26.01(b)(6) makes the equivalent agreement unenforceable on the same condition. A one-year or multi-year services term therefore needs a signed writing in those states.

What happens if the service provider is not licensed?

In California the consequence is severe. Business and Professions Code § 7031(a) bars an unlicensed contractor from bringing or maintaining any action to collect compensation for work requiring a licence, regardless of the merits of the claim, and § 7031(b) lets the customer sue to recover all compensation already paid. Licensing requirements are set state by state, so the analysis has to be run where the work is performed.

Service Agreement in the US

There is no federal contract code in the United States. A services contract is governed by the common law of the chosen state, and the practical constraints come from three directions: the statute of frauds where the term runs beyond a year, state licensing statutes that can void the right to be paid entirely, and the federal E-SIGN Act, which validates electronic signature but carves out specific categories of document.

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Governing law

State contract law governs formation, interpretation and remedies. Federal law contributes only the rule that electronic form alone cannot defeat validity.

Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act, 15 U.S.C. § 7001(a)

What a service agreement has to contain in the US

A signature, contract or other record relating to a transaction in or affecting interstate commerce may not be denied legal effect, validity or enforceability solely because it is in electronic form, nor because an electronic signature or record was used in its formation.
15 U.S.C. § 7001(a)
In New York an agreement that by its terms is not to be performed within one year from its making is void unless it, or a note or memorandum of it, is in writing and subscribed by the party to be charged.
New York General Obligations Law § 5-701(a)(1)
Texas applies the same rule: an agreement not to be performed within one year of the date of making is unenforceable unless in writing and signed by the person to be charged.
Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 26.01(a) and (b)(6)
In California a person acting as a contractor may not bring or maintain any action to collect compensation for work requiring a licence without alleging they were duly licensed at all times during performance, regardless of the merits of the claim.
Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 7031(a)
A California customer who uses an unlicensed contractor may bring an action to recover all compensation already paid to that contractor.
Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 7031(b)

Form, notarisation and registration

E-SIGN does not apply to a record to the extent it is governed by state law on the creation and execution of wills, codicils or testamentary trusts, by state family law, or by the Uniform Commercial Code other than Articles 2 and 2A and two named sections.
15 U.S.C. § 7003(a)

What catches drafters out

The California licensing bar operates regardless of the quality of the work, so a services agreement assigning licensed work to an unlicensed party leaves that party with no route to payment and exposed to disgorgement of what it has already received.
Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 7031(a) and (b)
E-SIGN also excludes court orders and official court documents, notices of utility cancellation, notices of health or life insurance cancellation, and product recall notices, so a services agreement cannot make electronic delivery sufficient for those.
15 U.S.C. § 7003(b)