The United Nations General Assembly has officially adopted the United Nations Convention on Negotiable Cargo Documents (NCD Convention), marking a historic leap forward for global supply chain digitalization and multimodal transport.
As the global voice of freight forwarders, FIATA (International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations) welcomes this development. Having participated in the Convention’s development since its inception under UNCITRAL Working Group VI, FIATA views this framework as the missing link required to harmonize international trade across land, air, and sea.
For decades, negotiable transport documents—the instruments that allow goods to be traded while in transit—have been primarily recognized in the maritime sector. The NCD Convention changes this by establishing a clear, technology-neutral legal framework that supports negotiability across all modes of transport.
The Convention aligns with the UN Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records (MLETR), providing legal equivalence between paper and electronic documents, such as the FIATA Multimodal Transport Bill of Lading (FBL and eFBL).
Key Benefits of the NCD Convention:
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Opt-In Flexibility: Commercial parties can choose to apply the Convention via a simple notation on their bill of lading, ensuring minimal disruption to existing operations.
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Enhanced Trade Finance: By providing legal certainty for cargo in transit, the Convention facilitates easier access to credit, particularly for landlocked and emerging economies.
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Digital Readiness: It provides a robust foundation for the electronic FIATA Bill of Lading (eFBL), driving transparency and reducing transaction costs.
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Empowering MSMEs: Small and medium-sized enterprises will benefit from reduced reliance on paper-heavy processes and lower administrative barriers.
“The NCD Convention is a major milestone for global logistics,” said FIATA Director General, Dr. Stéphane Graber. “FIATA is proud to have contributed nearly a century of expertise to ensure this instrument is operationally sound and future-ready. We look forward to supporting our members as we move from legal adoption to real-world implementation.”
The Convention is the result of years of collaboration initiated by a proposal from the People’s Republic of China to facilitate complex Europe-Asia trade routes. A formal signature ceremony is scheduled to take place in Accra, Ghana, in the second half of 2026.
The Convention will enter into force once ten States deposit their instruments of ratification. FIATA encourages governments and industry stakeholders to move toward early ratification.
To ensure a seamless transition, FIATA is prepared to operationalize the FBL under the new framework immediately upon its entry into force and will continue to collaborate with UNCITRAL, shippers, and the banking community to provide guidance and capacity-building resources.
