Shipping containers are seen stacked on top of each other at a cargo terminal in Hong Kong on July 18, 2020. (ISAAC LAWRENCE / AFP)

HOGN KONG - The United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG) will be implemented in Hong Kong on Dec 1 this year, bringing a set of unified rules for commercial transactions.

"Applying the CISG to the HKSAR marks an important development of the HKSAR's law on international sale of goods," said a spokesman for the Department of Justice.

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The CISG applies automatically to contracts of sale of goods between parties whose places of business are in different contracting states.

Applying the CISG (United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods) to the HKSAR marks an important development of the HKSAR's law on international sale of goods.

Spokesman, Department of Justice

It also applies to international sales contracts where the rules of private international law lead to the application of the law of one of the signatory jurisdictions.

One of the fundamental principles of the UN convention is party autonomy. With very limited exceptions, the parties can, by agreement, derogate from or vary the effect of any provisions of the CISG, or exclude the Convention’s application entirely.

“The availability of such an opt-out mechanism in the CISG will enable the parties to tailor their contracts to meet specific business needs,” the spokesman said.

The news came as the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government published in the gazette on Thursday the Sale of Goods (United Nations Convention) Ordinance (Commencement) Notice, meaning that the Sale of Goods (United Nations Convention) Ordinance will come into effect on Dec 1, 2022.

The ordinance was passed by the Legislative Council in September after a six-month public consultation showed a general support of the application of CISG in Hong Kong.

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This measure complements the national 14th Five-Year Plan of making Hong Kong an international trading hub.

CISG has 94 contracting states at present, including more than half of Hong Kong’s top 20 trading partners by total trade value.

About 45 percent of the countries and regions participating in the Belt and Road Initiative are also contracting parties, according to the HKSAR government.