Cape Town Treaty

Cape Town Treaty

Cape Town Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment
Parties   Signatories   Parties, also covered by EU's accession   Signatories, also covered by EU's accession   covered by EU's accession
Signed	16 November 2001
Location	Cape Town, South Africa
Effective	1 March 2006
Condition	3 ratifications
Parties	69
Depositary	International Institute for the Unification of Private Law
Citations	2307 U.N.T.S. 285
Languages	English, Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish
Full text
Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment at Wikisource

The Cape Town Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment, or Cape Town Treaty is an international treaty intended to standardize transactions involving movable property. The treaty creates international standards for registration of contracts of sale (including dedicated registration agencies), security interests (liens), leases and conditional sales contracts, and various legal remedies for default in financing agreements, including repossession and the effect of particular states' bankruptcy laws.

Three protocols to the convention are specific to three types of movable equipment: Aircraft Equipment (aircraft and aircraft engines; signed in 2001), railway equipment (signed in 2007) and space assets (signed in 2012).

The treaty resulted from a diplomatic conference held in Cape Town, South Africa in 2001. The conference was attended by 68 countries and 14 international organizations. 53 countries signed the resolution proposing the treaty . The treaty came into force on 1 April 2004 , and has been ratified by 57 parties. The Aircraft Protocol (which applies specifically to aircraft and aircraft engines ) took effect on 1 March 2006 when it was ratified by 8 countries: Ethiopia, Ireland, Malaysia, Nigeria, Oman, Panama, Pakistan, and the United States.

Signatures and ratifications

As of July 2015, the convention has been ratified by 64 states as well as the European Union. The railway and the space protocol have been ratified by respectively one country only (Luxembourg) and no countries and thus have not taken effect. An overview of the status of the treaty and protocols is shown below:

Instrument	Signature	Location	Entry into force	Signatures	Ratifications (required for entry into force)
Convention	16 November 2001	Cape Town	1 March 2006	28	69 (3)
Aircraft Protocol	16 November 2001	Cape Town	1 March 2006	23	60 (8)
Railway Rolling Stock Protocol	23 February 2007	Luxembourg	-	7	2 (4)
Space Assets Protocol	9 March 2012	Berlin	-	4	0 (10)

In the United States, the treaty was approved by the U.S. Senate in 2003, and implemented by the full Congress in the Cape Town Treaty Implementation Act of 2004.

European Union

The European Union joined the convention and the Aircraft Protocol as a Regional Economic Integration Organization. On the subject of the convention, both the Member states of the European Union and the Union itself have competence: e.g. while the substantive law regarding insolvency is regulated by the states, the conflict of law-rules (which county has jurisdiction etc.) is regulated by the European Union. According to the Government of the Netherlands the acceptance of the European Union in a member state which itself is not a party to the convention has no practical consequences. The European union accepted the Railway protocol in December 2014.

Protocols

Aircraft Protocol

  Parties

  Signed

  Parties, also covered by EU's accession

  Signatories, also covered by EU's accession

  covered by EU's accession

Aircraft Protocol

The aircraft Protocol (officially: Protocol to the Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment on matters specific to aircraft equipment) was signed immediately with the treaty and the only protocol currently entered into force. It applies to aircraft which can carry at least eight people or 2750 kilograms of cargo, aircraft engines with thrust exceeding 1,750 pounds-force (7,800 N) or 550 horsepower (410 kW), and helicopters carrying five or more passengers. The International Registry of Mobile Assets established to record international property interests in the aircraft equipment covered by the treaty is located in Ireland. Mediation cases for leasing disputes are to be heard in the High Court of Ireland. As of April 2016, the protocol has 64 contracting parties, which includes 63 states and the European Union.

State	Date of Ratification/ Accession	Comments
Afghanistan	25 July 2006
Albania	30 October 2007
Angola	30 April 2006
Australia	26 May 2015
Bahrain	27 November 2012
Bangladesh	15 December 2008
Belarus	27 September 2011
Bhutan	4 July 2014
Brazil	30 November 2011
Cameroon	14 April 2011
Canada	21 December 2012	New Brunswick: effective 1 July 2016 Yukon: effective 1 October 2014 others: 1 April 2013
Cape Verde	26 September 2007
China	3 February 2009	Excluding Hong Kong Macao
Colombia	19 February 2007
Congo	13 March 2013
Côte d'Ivoire	1 March 2016
Cuba	28 January 2009
Denmark	26 October 2015
Egypt	10 December 2014
Ethiopia	21 November 2003
European Union	28 April 2009	Only as far as it has competency over subjects of the convention/protocol. Not applicable to Denmark
Fiji	30 May 2012
India	31 March 2008
Indonesia	16 March 2007
Ireland	23 August 2005
Jordan	31 August 2010
Kazakhstan	1 June 2011
Kenya	13 October 2006
Kuwait	31 October 2013
Latvia	8 February 2011
Luxembourg	27 June 2008
Madagascar	15 December 2008
Malawi	10 April 2013
Malaysia	16 January 2014
Malta	1 October 2010
Mexico	31 July 2007
Mongolia	19 October 2006
Mozambique	18 July 2013
Myanmar	3 December 2012
Kingdom of the Netherlands	17 May 2007	Not European Netherlands Only for Aruba Curaçao Sint Maarten Caribbean Netherlands
New Zealand	20 July 2010
Nigeria	16 December 2003
Norway	20 December 2010
Oman	21 March 2005
Pakistan	22 January 2004
Panama	28 July 2003
Russia	25 May 2011
Rwanda	28 January 2010
San Marino	9 September 2014
Saudi Arabia	27 June 2008
Senegal	9 January 2006
Singapore	28 January 2009
South Africa	18 January 2007
Spain	27 November 2015
Sweden	30 December 2015
Tajikistan	31 May 2011
Togo	1 December 2011
Turkey	23 August 2011
Ukraine	31 July 2012
United Arab Emirates	29 April 2008
United Kingdom	27 July 2015	Extended to Cayman Islands, Gibraltar and Guernsey
United States	28 October 2004
Tanzania	30 January 2009
Vietnam	17 September 2014

Railway Rolling Stock

The Railway Rolling Stock Protocol, or Luxembourg Railway Protocol, officially the Protocol to the Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment on Matters Specific to Railway Rolling Stock was adopted on 23 February 2007 and applies to railway rolling stock (broadly defined as “vehicles movable on a fixed railway track or directly on, above or below a guideway”. The protocol establishes a registry located in Luxembourg and requires 4 countries for entry into force. Currently the protocol has been signed by Gabon, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Switzerland, the UK as well as the European Union, while it has been ratified by the European Union and 1 state: Luxembourg.

Space Assets

The Space Assets protocol, or Berlin Space Protocol (officially Protocol to the Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment on Matters specific to Space Assets) was concluded on 9 March 2012 and requires 10 ratifications before entry into force (in the original protocol this number was 4). The protocol applies to objects functioning in space like satellites or satellite parts. The convention was strongly opposed by the satellite industry, claiming that it would lead to increased bureaucracy and "make the financing of new satellite projects more difficult and expensive".

External links

• treaty and protocols at the Depositary website
• Treaty text and ratifications
• Aircraft protocol text and ratifications
• Railway rolling stock protocol text and ratifications
• Space Assets protocol text, draft final provisions and signatures

Aircraft Protocol

• International Registry of Mobile Assets
• Federal Aviation Administration - The Cape Town Treaty
• Benefits for airlines under the Cape Town Convention