International trade relations are conducted through the conclusion of various foreign trade transactions. They are concluded on different conditions. Foreign trade transaction is a special type of foreign trade operations. This concept is considered from different points of view. Features, definition and methods of concluding foreign economic transactions will be discussed below.
Definition
Foreign trade transaction is a concept that is indicated by the Fundamentals of civil law. It should be noted that it has been used for a long time in the description of trade transactions with foreign suppliers, manufacturers and organizations. Today, a foreign trade transaction is also called a foreign economic agreement. These are identical concepts. Foreign trade transactions are a broader concept, which includes foreign trade agreements.
Parties to such agreements are individuals or legal entities, one of which is a representative of another country. The content of such agreements is the export or import of finished products, services, rights to use the results of creative, scientific activity and its results.
Today, there are two main definitions of this concept. According to the first approach, a foreign trade transaction is an agreement concluded between persons whose main business activity is in different states. In this case, an agreement is concluded between legal entities of different countries.
The second definition of a foreign trade transaction is an agreement concluded between subjects of international private enterprise. It entails the emergence of international civil relations.
According to the first definition, the signs of such a transaction is its implementation for commercial purposes (in the course of entrepreneurial activity) by parties located in different states. In these countries, they operate in accordance with local laws. However, entering into a transaction, the parties regulate their relations on the basis of international law.
The signs of a foreign trade agreement in the second definition are contracts concluded between at least two different states. In this case, the object of the transaction must cross the border of these countries.
Types of transactions
There are different types of foreign trade transactions. They can be executed in the form of a contract, offer and acceptance. The first of these options is the most common. The offer is the offer of the seller. Acceptance - acceptance of the offer by the buyer.
A contract is an agreement that is concluded between two or more parties. Compliance with the provisions of the document is provided by law subject to certain conditions by the participants.
The deadline for implementing the clauses of the agreement may be different. If the delivery of goods, services is carried out immediately after signing the contract, the transaction is called a sale. If the contract indicates the period in which one party undertakes to send the other required products, this document is called a sale agreement.
Some types of contracts may be concluded orally. However, in most cases, in order to attract the counterparty to the enforcement of the clauses of the agreement, a written document is required.
The contract of a foreign trade transaction involves the signing of a memorandum. It indicates the parties and the subject of the agreement, the conditions of the upcoming transaction, the cost of delivery. It is believed that the contract was concluded at the time of sending the seller a written confirmation of acceptance of the order within the time specified by the buyer.
The contract obliges the buyer to accept the goods or services and pay for them. The seller must arrange delivery on time at a set price.
Offer
Considering the types of foreign trade transactions, attention should be paid to such varieties as the offer. This is one way to agree on future supply conditions. Instead of an offer, a request or order may be issued. The choice of a preliminary arrangement depends on the particularities of cooperation.
The offer is a commercial offer of the seller. He expresses his desire to sell the goods. At the same time, he immediately stipulates the conditions under which he agrees to conclude an agreement. The text of the offer contains information on the number and name of products, their cost. Also, the basic conditions and delivery times must be indicated. If it is possible to pay on credit, its terms are negotiated. Similar offers can be of the following types:
- initiative - conducted by the seller on his own initiative;
- passive - are issued after treatment (request);
- firm offers - an offer for only one potential buyer, which has a limited validity period;
- free offers - the product is offered to several buyers without a time limit for their response;
- contract offer - a counter-offer from the buyer, which contains partial agreement with the conditions and a list of new requirements for concluding a transaction.
It may be other contracts. Preliminary agreements are concluded in various forms.
Request, order
Parties may pre-negotiate terms of foreign trade transactions by submitting a request. This is the buyer's appeal to the seller, in which he asks for the manufacturer to submit an offer. The buyer in the request also indicates the conditions on which he is ready to conclude a contract. Inquiries are most often sent to several sellers at once.
Another preliminary document in international transactions is the order. It is sent by the buyer to the seller. This document expresses a firm intention to buy a certain product under the established conditions. If, within the agreed period, the seller fulfills all the conditions of the application, the agreement shall be deemed concluded. This document becomes automatically binding upon both parties.
Acceptance
Sometimes a preliminary form of foreign trade transactions such as acceptance is used. This type of transaction has several options for concluding mechanisms. The buyer can accept the offer on a firm offer. This is an unconditional acceptance.
If the seller was sent a counter-offer, he can agree with the terms of the buyer. In this case, the counterfeit is accepted. This, for example, may be a foreign trade barter transaction.
If the seller has sent a free offer to the buyer, he gives his consent to the terms of the offer by written acceptance.
When placing an order, it also needs to be confirmed. In this case, the acceptance is the automatic consent of the buyer to purchase the goods indicated by him at the set price.
The presented forms of foreign trade transactions have certain features. So, if a solid offer is sent to the buyer, and the buyer expresses an unconditional acceptance, the transaction is considered to be concluded. If the seller has sent several offers to different customers, and then several of them have expressed a desire to purchase the goods, the company chooses the acceptance that was the first or is strategically beneficial for it.
If the seller has received an order from the buyer, he can accept it in writing subject to agreement with all the conditions. It also leads to an automatic transaction. This mode of agreement is one of the fastest. An order can go online. The manufacturer will be able to quickly receive and process it.
In international trade, they often conclude sales contracts.
Signing procedure, legal regulation
Foreign trade and foreign trade deal often implies the same definition. The first concept is more extensive, and the second is its integral part. Foreign trade agreements can be concluded in various forms. According to Art. 11 of the Vienna Convention of 1980, such agreements may take various forms. The contract does not have to be in writing. It can also be confirmed by testimony. In some countries, there is the practice of concluding certain types of transactions orally (Germany, France, USA, etc.).
Russian law stipulates that a transaction cannot be declared invalid only due to non-compliance with the form. If the agreement complies with all legal requirements, it will be deemed valid. All international treaties concluded by private and legal entities of our country are drawn up in writing in simple form. If the parties do not comply with this requirement, the transaction shall be declared invalid.
Foreign trade transactions are regulated by various branches of law (tax, administrative, civil, customs, etc.). Also, regulatory international acts and foreign partners may be involved in this process. Regulation at the conclusion of such agreements is complex.
Since goods and services cross the border of another state during the implementation of the clauses of the agreement, the parties cannot but take into account the particularities of import and export of products, as well as their registration at customs. Moreover, the goods must comply with sanitary, environmental requirements, standards and other parameters established by the state.
The Russian Federation reserves the right to influence, if necessary, the implementation of foreign trade operations through customs and tariff and non-tariff regulation. Before the goods are processed at customs, Russian residents draw up a transaction passport. This is a currency control document.
Signs of foreign trade transactions
When considering the concept of a foreign trade transaction, it is also necessary to pay attention to the signs of such agreements. There are several such characteristics. The main sign is its conclusion by a Russian participant in foreign trade activities with a foreign partner. This, for example, may be an agreement concluded between a domestic company and its subsidiary, which is registered in another state.
Also, the second sign of such transactions is their conclusion in foreign currency. The foreign trade barter transaction in this case is not calculated in foreign currency. However, the value of goods that cross the border is calculated in dollars, euros or other monetary units.
Another sign of a foreign trade transaction is the movement of goods or services across the state border (export or import). An exception may be the situation when the purchased products are sold in a foreign country. In this case, they do not cross the border, but the transaction is considered international.
It is also worth considering that, according to Russian law, international transactions can be concluded exclusively in writing. On these conditions, our country has acceded to the Vienna Convention.
Transaction Procedure
There are certain stages of a foreign trade transaction. They allow the parties to fulfill their obligations in full and minimize risks when concluding contracts. An important step in concluding an agreement is negotiation. They can be arranged remotely or in person. This allows you to meet a potential partner.
After that, in the negotiation process, a decision is made by the commercial side of the signing of the contract or another way to conclude an agreement. The main conditions and procedure for signing the contract are discussed.
After that, the legal status of the partner, the place of registration of his business, as well as legal capacity are checked. Next, we study the financial position of the company, its rating and reputation. It is important to find out in accordance with the legal features of which country its activities are conducted. It is necessary to obtain documents that confirm that the partner is registered with state bodies. Establish who will sign the contract, as well as its authority.
There are certain features of a foreign trade transaction concluded between a resident of the Russian Federation and a legal, private person of another state. Foreign trade agreements are signed in accordance with Russian law, regardless of where the contract is concluded. In this case, it is required to follow a simple written form of the agreement. Otherwise, it will not be considered valid.
Legal succession
Control of foreign trade transactions is carried out in accordance with the law of a particular system affiliation. When concluding a transaction, special attention is paid to securing obligations for both parties. In some cases, the parties to the agreement unilaterally or bilaterally do not fulfill the obligations specified in the contract. Sometimes situations arise that are not provided for in the contract. In these cases, dispute resolution is carried out according to the principle established by international law.
It has been established that the parties can agree on the process of regulating their interests in the legal system of which country (to which they belong). However, the autonomy of the will of the parties is understood by the legislation of different countries in different ways. In some countries, this choice is unlimited. However, when concluding agreements with a specific list of countries, the parties choose the legal regulation of that country, which is closely related to a specific agreement.
In our country, contracts that are concluded with foreign counterparties are regulated in accordance with Russian law. It is worth noting that the correct and timely choice by the parties of the method, body and place of dispute resolution allows you to quickly resolve the conflict. This avoids the occurrence of various misunderstandings. Difficulties in doing business with international partners in this case will be minimal.
