1. What is the eUCP? Does it replace UCP500?The eUCP is supplement to the UCP covering electronic presentation of documents. It includes rules regarding such matters as the format for such documents, how they are to be presented, and what happens if they are corrupted. The International Chamber of Commerce emphasizes that the eUCP is “an update rather than a full revision of the rules. It represents a bridge between current UCP500 and the processing of the electronic equivalent of paper-based documents and it is to be used in tandem with, not as a replacement of UCP500.”
As a supplement, the eUCP does not alter the existing articles of UCP500. When documents are all to be presented in paper form, it has no effect.
2. Is every letter of credit issued after March 31, 2002 automatically subject to the eUCP?
No letter of credit is subject to the UCP unless it says so. In like manner, no L/C is subject to the eUCP unless it says so. The eUCP cannot stand on its own and therefore incorporates the UCP, but not vice versa.
3. Is a letter of credit that has been issued electronically automatically subject to the eUCP?
Furthermore, how will electronic letters of credit be delivered to the beneficiaries?
The eUCP deals only with electronic presentation of documents, not with electronic creation or delivery of letters of credit. Letters of credit have been issued electronically for decades, with Issuing Banks using SWIFT to send them to the Advising Banks. How a letter of credit is advised to a Beneficiary is up to the Advising Bank. Advising Banks typically mail them to the Beneficiaries. Some banks, like ABN AMRO, do offer services to their customers that include electronic delivery of letters of credit, but this is not in any way impacted by the eUCP.
Receiving the L/C on paper does not somehow restrict the Beneficiary’s ability to create and present documents electronically. Neither does receiving a letter of credit electronically imply documents must be presented electronically. We expect that soon many L/Cs will be delivered as Identrus-signed e-mail attachments. (See the answer to question 14 for more about Identrus.) Another e-mail possibility is to post the L/C at a Website and e-mail a hyperlink address to the Beneficiary.
4. Am I expected to start sending and receiving documents electronically beginning April 1st? What if I’m not ready? May I present paper documents under an L/C that is subject to the eUCP?
Even if a letter of credit is subject to the eUCP, it may still require the Beneficiary to present some or all of the documents on paper. It is also possible for the Applicant to give the Beneficiary the option to present specified documents either on paper or electronically—this further gives the Beneficiary the option to choose to make the L/C subject only to the UCP by presenting only paper documents. This is addressed in eUCP Articles e1 and e2. (Note that all eUCP article numbers start with "e" to distinguish them from UCP articles as eUCP L/Cs are actually subject to both.) It is recommended that importers and exporters discuss with one another their readiness to send and receive electronic documents before making them required.
5. How will the banks handle it if some documents are presented electronically and others on paper?
The eUCP anticipates that there will be “mixed presentations” of paper and electronic documents. Furthermore, it anticipates a practice of presenting electronic documents individually rather than all at the same time. In order to provide the banks with a mechanism for assembling documents presented in such piecemeal fashion, the rules require that each presentation of documents include the relevant L/C number and that the Beneficiary present a “notice of completeness” when all the documents have been presented.
eUCP - Anwers to FAQ - Part 2
eUCP - Anwers to FAQ - Part 3
eUCP - Anwers to FAQ - Part 4
eUCP - Anwers to FAQ - Part 5 (Final Part)
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