France enacts decree fully embedding UNCITRAL MLETR into domestic law - Trade Treasury Payments

France has formally joined the ranks of jurisdictions at the forefront of trade digitalisation, publishing the implementing decree for Title II of its June 2024 “Attractiveness” Law in the Journal officiel. This decree, now in force, completes France’s legislative alignment with the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records (MLETR).

With this legislative milestone, France becomes one of a select group of economies to offer a fully operational legal framework that accords electronic records (such as bills of lading, bills of exchange and promissory notes) the same legal recognition and enforceability as their paper counterparts. 

The decree provides the necessary technical and legal parameters for what constitutes a “reliable method” to ensure the uniqueness, exclusive control, and integrity of digital instruments. In doing so, the regulation enables interoperability with EU-qualified trust services under the forthcoming eIDAS 2 regulation.

The legal foundation for this development was laid in June 2024, when the the country’s lawmakers passed Law n° 2024‑537, which had the explicit objective of enhancing France’s attractiveness as a business destination and deepening access to financing, particularly for SMEs and mid-sized firms. Title II of the law was dedicated specifically to MLETR alignment.

While the regulatory shift is significant, its ultimate impact will depend on how effectively firms in the country are able to take advantage of the new circumstances. Recent mapping of the TradeTech landscape by Bpifrance shows a number of firms in France developing tools related to digital trade documentation, including solutions for electronic bills of lading, digital negotiable instruments, and compliance management. 

Whether these offerings scale effectively in response to the new legal certainty will depend on industry uptake, public-private coordination, and broader market confidence.