Checklist · International Business Law
Checking the payment clause of an international contract
The international payment clause allocates risks between seller and buyer. It indeed determines who bears non-payment, exchange rate risk and the cost of the payment term. Two identical contracts can thus allocate these risks in opposite ways. The checklist therefore examines the clause before signature, from both points of view.
What the international payment clause checklist verifies
- Identification of the transaction.
- Payment method and schedule.
- Guarantees and documentary instruments.
- Currency, exchange and bank charges.
- Late payment, payment default and retention of title.
- Consistency with the Incoterm and delivery.
- Finally, a record of uncovered risks, rated from 1 to 5, and the follow-up actions.
When to check an international payment clause
The checklist serves first before an export sales contract is signed. It also serves when a new payment instrument is negotiated. Furthermore, it informs the analysis of a non-payment.
Finance and sales departments are in particular its intended readers. The document also concerns export managers and credit managers.
Instructions for use
The checklist is first gone through from the seller’s point of view, then from the buyer’s. Each risk is then linked to an instrument or a clause. Furthermore, consistency with the Incoterm is checked systematically. Finally, the record of uncovered risks, rated from 1 to 5, guides negotiation or hedging.
Key facts
| Format | PDF, 4 pages |
|---|---|
| Languages | French, English, Spanish, Arabic |
| Version | October 2026 |
| Access | download after registration |
| Scope | international sale and service contracts; rules of the International Chamber of Commerce |
Limitations
The checklist does not replace the bank’s view on documentary instruments. Likewise, exchange control regulations are to be checked for each transaction. Finally, the document is to be read together with the notes on use and references it contains.
Further reading: investment project structuring; International Chamber of Commerce.
- Prepared by ASKonsult
- Languages: French, English, Spanish, Arabic
- Version: octobre 2026
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General information document; it constitutes neither legal advice nor an opinion on a particular situation. References to legal texts should be checked against the version in force on the date of use.
Consulting firm not registered with the Bar; no representation before the courts and no act reserved to the regulated legal professions.