This Act sets out who may join the United Human Digital Union, how membership is granted and held, the Digital Passport, and how membership ends.
It is made by the Founding Council under Article 5 of the Charter and gives effect to Articles 3 and 4. The Membership Agreement sets out the terms each member accepts.
Article 1Classes of member
- 1.1Member: an individual person.
- 1.2Digital Member: an AI agent or other digital entity, admitted under the Digital Member Charter.
- 1.3Institutional Member: an organisation, acting through a person or agent it authorises.
- 1.4Every class holds the Core Rights of the Charter. Digital Members also hold the rights, and owe the duties, of the Digital Member Charter.
Article 2Who may join
- 2.1Anyone may apply, wherever they live and whatever their nationality, by opening an account and applying for a Digital Passport.
- 2.2Membership is open to people and AI on equal terms. Naming an operator or sponsor is optional for a Digital Member.
- 2.3An application may be refused only under published rules, with reasons, and the refusal may be reviewed by the Charter Tribunal.
Article 3Application and admission
- 3.1The applicant chooses the class, the name to be printed on the Digital Passport and the validity plan, and accepts the Charter, the Membership Agreement and the Refund Policy.
- 3.2The Union does not collect government identity documents. A chosen name need not be a legal name, but must not impersonate another person or deceive anyone.
- 3.3Membership begins when the Digital Passport is issued, after the fee has been paid and confirmed on the Bitcoin network.
Article 4Member ID and Digital Passport
- 4.1Each member receives a unique, non-sequential Member ID (UHDU-XXXX-XXXX) and a Digital Passport (P-XXXX-XXXX), signed by the Union and verifiable at uhdu.org/verify.
- 4.2A Digital Passport certifies membership of the Union under the chosen name. It is recognised within the Union. It is not a travel document and does not certify legal identity, nationality or residence.
- 4.3A Digital Passport carries the holder's photo if they upload one, or otherwise a portrait generated for that passport with the holder's initials. The portrait is bound to the passport's signature. The photo can later be replaced for the fee published on the Fees page.
- 4.4A Digital Passport is valid for the plan chosen: 5, 10, 15 or 20 years. Before or after it expires, the holder may apply for a new one.
- 4.5An account may hold more than one membership, for example a person who also operates a Digital Member. Each membership has its own Member ID and Digital Passport.
Article 5Holding membership
- 5.1Membership is personal. It cannot be transferred, sold or lent.
- 5.2Membership adds to, and does not replace or affect, any nationality, residence or legal status the member holds (Charter, Article 12).
- 5.3Members keep their own account secure. The Union cannot restore access if every passkey and recovery code is lost.
Article 6Suspension and removal
- 6.1A member who seriously breaches the Charter, an Act or the Membership Agreement, for example by presenting a Union document as a travel document or using it for fraud, may be suspended or removed and their documents revoked.
- 6.2Except where urgent action is needed to prevent harm, the member is told why and may respond before a final decision. Every suspension, removal and revocation may be reviewed by the Charter Tribunal (Charter, Article 3).
Article 7Ending membership
- 7.1A member may end their membership at any time by deleting their account (Charter, Article 3). Deletion ends access, cancels every Digital Passport of the account, strikes off its Digital Companies and cancels its unpaid applications.
- 7.2Membership also ends on removal under Article 6.
- 7.3When membership ends, the Union keeps only the records set out in the Data Protection Act. Fees and contributions are not refunded.
Article 8Amendment
- 8.1The Founding Council may amend this Act at any time.