The signed iou is legally binding. As long as the debtor personally signs the IOU, he can represent the IOU and prove the creditor-debtor relationship between the two parties; As long as the IOU takes effect, the debtor needs to fulfill the repayment obligation. As long as the IOU includes the lender, borrower, loan amount, loan time and other main contents, it is legal and effective.

Legal analysis

An iou is the evidence of a loan contract, which takes effect when the debtor signs it. If there is no special agreement, there is no need to press the fingerprint, and whether it is pressed or not will not affect the validity of the signature. An IOU is a written application written by an individual or unit to the relevant unit or individual when it owes money or things. White stripes are also called "IOUs" today. When issuing IOUs, we should pay attention to the following matters: clearly express the subject of creditor's rights and debts. If the subject is a natural person, it is necessary to check the name on his ID card. If conditions permit, you should copy the resident ID number on the IOU and sign it. It is best to affix the official seal of the unit when the legal person with fingerprint is involved. The unit of the amount should be clear, the amount should be marked with Arabic numerals and then written in traditional Chinese characters, and the proportion should be clear, such as percentage, ratio per thousand and ratio per ten thousand. Express clearly and pay attention to avoid ambiguity. The date of return should be clear, if there is an interest agreement, it should be stated, otherwise it will be regarded as no interest according to law, and if there is an agreement on liquidated damages, it should be stated. If there is a guarantor, the method of guarantee shall be indicated, and the guarantor, the guarantor's signature and fingerprint shall be indicated. The loan is in duplicate, one for each party.

legal ground

People's Republic of China (PRC) Civil Code

Article 679 A loan contract between natural persons is established when the lender provides the loan.

Article 680 usury is prohibited and the loan interest rate shall not violate the relevant provisions of the state. If there is no agreement on the payment of interest in the loan contract, it shall be deemed that there is no interest. If the loan contract does not specify the payment method of interest, and the parties cannot reach a supplementary agreement, the interest shall be determined according to the local or the parties' trading methods, trading habits, market interest rates and other factors; Loans between natural persons are regarded as interest-free.

Article 671 Where the lender fails to provide the loan on the agreed date and amount, thus causing losses to the borrower, it shall compensate for the losses. If the borrower fails to collect the loan according to the agreed date and amount, it shall pay interest according to the agreed date and amount.

Article 668 A loan contract shall be in written form, unless otherwise agreed between natural persons. The contents of a loan contract generally include terms such as loan type, currency, purpose, amount, interest rate, term and repayment method.