Beware of fraudulent documents mentioning ICC

Preventing fraud is central to ICC’s mission, safeguarding the integrity of ICC activities, maintaining credibility and trust across the global business community, and benefiting everyone who relies on its standards and services.  

Some scams involve the use of fake ICC documents, publications, communications, certificates or payment requests while others use authentic ICC documents in a fraudulent or misleading manner.  

Here‘s how to recognise the authenticity of an ICC document or communication: 

Golden Rules to identify an ICC document  

3. All official ICC model contracts and clauses can be found on the ICC website here. Any documents not available on this page (that are entitled or headed as ICC documents) are not ICC model contracts and are not endorsed by ICC.

4. Latest versions of ICC rules and standards are available on the ICC website and the ICC store.

5. Only the Secretariat of the ICC International Court of Arbitration, located at ICC international headquarters in Paris, and its affiliates and offices abroad, provide ICC dispute resolution services. The Secretariat of the ICC International Court of Arbitration operates through ICC’s affiliates and offices. Arbitration proceedings are never administered by ICC national committees or groups, or by ICC members.

6. Only the Secretariat of the ICC International Court of Arbitration, located at ICC international headquarters in Paris, and its affiliates and offices abroad, provide ICC dispute resolution services. The Secretariat of the ICC International Court of Arbitration operates through ICC’s affiliates and offices. Arbitration proceedings are never administered by ICC national committees or groups, or by ICC members.

Please refer to the FAQ below for more information.

Please refer to the FAQ below to verify the authenticity of a Certificate of Origin.

9. Unusual or suspicious formatting or blurry text is often an indicator that a document is fake. If a document has been scanned into a computer and then edited, the edited text will appear different to the original text.

10. If you suspect an email is fraudulent, check the domain name used is the sender address. ICC domain names and email addresses always end with iccwbo.org.

11. Following is a non-exhaustive list of documents that ICC never issues:
    • Irrevocable Master Free Protection Agreement (IMFPA); 
    • Certificate of Import and Export License Registration;  
    • International Buyer’s License;  
    • Importation and Exportation License;
    • International Commerce Certificate Iso 9001:2000;
    • Blacklists;
    • Warning letter for Buyer/Seller;
    • Payment requests not related to a contract with ICC or an arbitration procedure (such as: Approval of Refund Request for Supervisory). Please be aware that any document bearing the ICC logo asking for a huge or unusual amount of money or for banking information may be fraudulent. Refer to the last section of the FAQ below for more information on what to do if you suspect fraudulent activity;
    •  Regulatory sanctions or fines. 

FAQ

Traders are advised to familiarise themselves with ICC rules and mechanisms that are used every day in the conduct of trade. Read the following FAQ to find genuine information: