Uniform Customs and Practice for Documentary Credits

Uniform Customs and Practice for Documentary Credits, UCP 600

Commercial letters of credit are the lifeblood of the international trade system and, for more than 70 years, the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) has established the rules governing documentary credits worldwide. By a unanimous vote of 91 to 0, the ICC Banking Commission on October 25, 2006 approved UCP 600, ICC’s revised rules on documentary credits and how to use a letter of credit. UCP 600 entered into force on July 1, 2007 and contains substantive changes to the existing rules that all international business professionals need to know.

New Provisions

A leaner set of rules, with 39 articles rather than 49 articles of UCP 500
A new section of definitions, containing terms such as “honor” and “negotiation”
A replacement of the term “reasonable time” with a definite number of days for examining and determining compliance of documents
A new provision concerning addresses of the beneficiary and the applicant
An expanded discussion of “original documents”
Re-drafted transport articles aimed at resolving confusion over the identification of carriers and agents.

The new UCP 600 also contains within the text the 12 articles of the eUCP, ICC’s supplement to the UCP governing presentation of documents in electronic or part-electronic form.

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