The UN convention governing international sales of goods is the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods, commonly abbreviated CISG.
The CISG was adopted in Vienna on April 11, 1980, after work by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law, or UNCITRAL. It entered into force on January 1, 1988, creating common rules for cross-border sales rather than forcing every dispute into one country’s domestic sales law.
Its provisions cover subjects such as contract formation, delivery, conformity of goods, payment, breach, damages, and other remedies. It generally concerns commercial goods sold between parties whose places of business are in different countries, with important exclusions for areas such as consumer purchases, many services, ships, and aircraft.
“Vienna Convention” is a defensible nickname for the CISG, but it can be confusing because several international treaties were concluded in Vienna. Parties may also exclude or vary the CISG by contract, so it does not automatically govern every international sale.