Alinea Customs Briefing: The United Nations Convention on Negotiable Cargo Documents (New York, 2025) (the “Accra Convention on Negotiable Cargo Documents” (NCD) was adopted by the UN General Assembly on 15 December 2025.
The NCD establishes a uniform legal framework to govern the issuance and use of negotiable cargo documents (NCD) – a document of title, in paper or electronic format, that represents goods in transit, regardless of transport mode. Whereas traditionally the bill of lading – applicable to the carriage of goods by sea, has been the only transport document that acts as a receipt, contract of carriage, and negotiable (transferrable) document, the NCD extends a rule addressing the transfer of rights delivery, of suit, and of disposal to the holder (article 7 together with the transfer of the rights of the holder (article 11), extending to any modality of transport and also supporting the digitalisation of global trade. The Convention has specified that an NCD may be transferred either endorsement and transfer of possession, or by mere transfer of possession if the last endorsement is in blank.
The role as document of title is formalised whereby the issuance and initial transfer of possession of an NCD as well as any subsequent transfers to the holder shall entail the acquisition of rights to the goods, and physical handling of goods, including the right to demand delivery of the goods at destination (articles 7 and 10) and liability of the holder (article 9) whilst offering protection to a third party acting in good faith (article 6 (3)).
The Accra Convention has outlined that it envisions that the issuance of an NCD should be only where agreed with the transport operator that issues the NCD, and the consignor, which enters into a contract with the transport operator for the transport of the goods. It is also documented that the Accra Convention does not affect carrier liability and the implementation of existing frameworks including the Hague / Hague-Visby Rules, Hamburg Rules (where applicable), Rotterdam Rules (if applicable), and mandatory safety, customs, and port regulations. Whilst the UK has not announced plans to join the Convention, UK companies that purchase goods via an NCD where a transport operator has taken charge of the goods in a contracting State Party (Article 1 (1a)) or whereby the NCD is issued in a contracting State Party (Article 1 1c) are not precluded from application by contract.
The request to the UN Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) was initially positioned by the government of China in 2019 in relation to rail consignment notes and will be particularly welcomed by landlocked countries.
Anna Joubin-Bret, Trade Secretary of the UN Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) announced at a press conference:
“the new convention will reduce the costs of trade along inland routes and will assist both landlocked countries and countries with large mainland territories in integrating more effectively into global supply chains”.
The Accra Convention will enter into force once ratified by ten countries – with China, nations within the African Continental Free Trade Area, and Central Asian counties expressing an interest in access.
Download the draft text of the Accra Convention from the UN Digital Library: United Nations Convention on Negotiable Cargo Documents : draft resolution.
NCD Convention Press Release: https://uncitral.un.org/en/ncdconvention
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