Panama ratifies the Beijing Convention on the Judicial Sale of Ships

For information only - not an official document

UNIS/L/395
23 March 2026

VIENNA, 23 March (UN Information Service) - Panama has ratified the United Nations Convention on the International Effects of Judicial Sales of Ships, also known as the "Beijing Convention on the Judicial Sale of Ships". The ratification by Panama was effected on 19 March 2026, and the Convention will enter into force for Panama on 15 September 2026. Panama becomes the fourth State party to the Convention, which itself entered into force on 17 February 2026. The entry into force of the Convention for Panama is particularly significant given the size of its ship registry.

The Convention was prepared by UNCITRAL and adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 7 December 2022. It establishes a harmonized regime for giving international effect to judicial sales, while preserving domestic law governing the procedure of judicial sales and the circumstances in which judicial sales confer clean title. By ensuring legal certainty as to the title that the purchaser acquires in the ship as it navigates internationally, the Convention is designed to maximize the price that the ship is able to attract in the market and the proceeds available for distribution among creditors, and to promote international trade.

The Convention is open for signature, ratification, acceptance, approval or accession by States and regional economic integration organizations. Thirty-three States and one regional economic integration organization have thus far become signatories to the Convention. Information on the Convention and its status is available on the UNCITRAL website.

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The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) is the core legal body of the United Nations system in the field of international trade law. Its mandate is to remove legal obstacles to international trade by progressively modernizing and harmonizing trade law. It prepares legal texts in a number of key areas such as international commercial dispute settlement, electronic commerce, insolvency, international payments, sale of goods, transport law, procurement and infrastructure development.

UNCITRAL also provides technical assistance to law reform activities, including assisting Member States to review and assess their law reform needs and to draft the legislation required to implement UNCITRAL texts. The UNCITRAL secretariat is located in Vienna, Austria. For more information, visit: uncitral.un.org .

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For information, please contact:

Neale Bergman
Senior Legal Officer
UNCITRAL secretariat
Email: neale.bergman[at]un.org