The Beijing Convention on the Judicial Sale of Ships enters into force on 17 February 2026. The treaty creates a harmonized system for recognizing judicial sales of ships across borders. It aims to make international ship transactions safer and more efficient.
The Convention was developed by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law and adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2022. It addresses long-standing risks faced by buyers and financiers when previous creditors claim rights over vessels after a sale.
Under the Convention, a judicial sale in one State Party is recognized by all other Parties. Buyers receive a “clean title,” free from prior debts or maritime claims. This protects new owners from future ship arrests in foreign ports.
States must issue a notice and, where applicable, a certificate of judicial sale. IMO will act as the repository for these documents. It will publish them through a dedicated module on its GISIS platform, giving stakeholders public access to standardized information.
Until now, judicial sales depended on national laws, which differed widely. The Convention modernizes the system and reduces legal uncertainty. It lowers transaction risk, supports stronger ship values, and facilitates smoother international trade.
The Convention applies when a sale takes place in a State Party and the ship is located in that state at the time. It enters into force for Barbados, El Salvador, and Spain.
So far, 33 states and the European Union have signed the Convention. This includes major maritime nations such as China, Belgium, Italy, Panama, Singapore, Switzerland, and Saudi Arabia.
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