WT/GC/W/870  
 
24 March 2023  
(23-2125) Page: 1/4 
  Original: English  
 
WORK PROGRAMME ON ELECTRONIC COMMERCE  
TRADE DIGITALISATION: MAKING LEGISLATIVE AND REGULATORY FRAMEWORKS INCLUSIVE, 
TRANSPARENT, AND EFFICIENT  
Communication from the United Kingdom  
The following communication, dated 23 March 2023, is being circulated at the request of the 
delegation of the United Kingdom.  
 
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1  INTRODUCTION  
1.1.  The COVID -19 pandemic has underscored the importance of digital trade and accelerated 
digital tra nsformation. Digital trade has been a key factor in mitigating the economic slowdown, 
sustaining wellbeing, and speeding up economic recovery. Companies around the world have rapidly 
accelerated the digitalisation of their operations, contributing to the b roader digitalisation of trade.  
1.2.  Trade digitalisation is about the use of digital technology to improve trade processes, aiming 
to make them easier, cheaper, faster, and more secure. It means increasingly moving from a world 
where trade is dominated by pap er-based, manual, and fragmented processes to one which is digital, 
automated, and more interoperable across borders. This evolution will unlock new opportunities for 
micro, small, and medium -sized enterprises (MSMEs), including those in developing countri es and 
those run by women, making global trade more inclusive.  
1.3.  Presently, costs encountered at the border pose a substantial barrier to trade. However, the 
use of digital technologies can greatly reduce those costs. Trade costs can be equivalent to applyin g 
a 134 per cent ad valorem tariff on a product in high -income countries and to a 219 per cent 
ad valorem  tariff in developing countries .1 Utilising technology can make border processes up to 
90 per cent faster and 60 per cent cheaper in some circumstance s. It can also lead to a significant 
increase in exports and a substantial return on investment .2 Increased trade digitalisation is only 
possible through the continued removal of legal and regulatory barriers and through making the 
legislative and regulatory frameworks underpinning trade digitalisation inclusive, transparent, 
and efficient.  
2  ENABLING LEGISLATIVE AND REGULATORY FRAMEWORKS  
2.1.  Digital trade depends both on digitally enabled systems and processes, and on widespread 
digital infrastructure and reliable connectivity. But all of those take time to develop, and legislation 
and regulation can somet imes lag behind the pace of technological change. A particular regulatory 
hurdle for all forms of digital trade is the continued legal requirement in many countries for paper 
documentation and ‘wet ' signatures. Processes such as this make trade slower, mor e expensive, and 
less appealing to businesses – especially MSMEs.  
 
1 WTO World Trade Report 2015  
2 UN/CEFACT (2017) : White Paper, Paperless Trade, v.1  WT/GC/W/870  
 
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  2.2.  Trade digitalisation requires enabling legislative and regulatory frameworks to be inclusive, 
transparent, efficient, as well as globally compatible. Such frameworks can be developed by 
examining global best practice and aligning domestic policymaking with it. The United Nations 
Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) provides several model laws in the area of trade 
digitalisation which underpin global best practice in this space, i ncluding the Model Law on Electronic 
Commerce (1996) and the Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records (2017).   
2.3.  The UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Commerce (1996) established rules for the equal 
treatment of electronic and paper -based information, as  well as for the legal recognition of electronic 
transactions and processes. This is based on the fundamental principles of non -discrimination 
against the use of electronic means, functional equivalence, and technological neutrality. Legislation 
based on o r influenced by this Model Law has been adopted in 83 States and a total of 
164 jurisdictions .3  
2.4.  The UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records (2017) applied the same 
principles to enable and facilitate the use in electronic form of transferab le documents and 
instruments. These include bills of lading, bills of exchange, cheques, promissory notes, and 
warehouse receipts. Legislation based on or influenced by this Model Law has been adopted in 
7 States and a total of 7 jurisdictions .4 Taken tog ether, these Model Laws provide a template for an 
inclusive, transparent, efficient, and globally compatible trade digitalisation legislative framework 
that is ripe for global adoption.  
3  ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF TRADE DIGITALISATION  
3.1.  Trade digitalisation is like ly to yield significant benefits to businesses, especially MSMEs. For 
example, estimates suggest that the transition to paperless trade systems could save annual export 
gains worth up to USD 257 billion in Asia Pacific alone. This would also reduce export time by 24 to 
44 per cent and lower export costs by 17 to 31 per cent. For both export and import times, a 10 per 
cent increase in a country 's paperless trade implementation score, as measured by the UN Economic 
and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacif ic (UNESCAP), is associated with an approximately 6  per 
cent decrease in trade times .5   
3.2.  Trade digitalisation measures, as well as broader trade facilitation, can reduce trade costs and 
benefit MSMEs and cross -border e -commerce. The Organisation for Econo mic Co -operation and 
Development (OECD) has found that improvement in trade facilitation can increase the probability 
of an MSME starting to export by up to 3 per cent. It could also increase the value of MSME exports .6  
3.3.  Trade digitalisation also supports  women led businesses which rely more on business -to-
consumer (B2C) trade. Trade in small parcels is key for B2C sales and digitalisation is found to 
particularly benefit parcel exports. The OECD has found that digital trading systems are important 
for wom en led MSMEs because they reduce the costs of processing documentation. Furthermore, 
they shelter women entrepreneurs from potential harassment and discrimination by dematerialising 
formalities. Reforms that reduce time required for processes can benefit w omen who often face 
additional constraints on their time related to care responsibilities7. 
3.4.  In the Commonwealth, digital trade facilitation across borders could increase trade across the 
Commonwealth by around USD 90 billion. Legal reform to support the d igitalisation of electronic 
records could unleash as much as USD 1.1 trillion, bringing the total benefits from paperless trade 
to nearly  USD 1.2 trillion by 2026. Such legal reform is estimated to decrease trade costs by, on 
average, 75 per cent and for some costs up to 81 per cent8.  
4  CASE STUDY: THE UK ELECTRONIC TRADE DOCUMENTS BILL  
4.1.  In the context of sharing national experiences and  recognising the economic benefits and 
efficiency gains presented by trade digitalisation, the UK Government introduce d the Electronic Trade 
 
3 Status: UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Commerce (1996) . 
4 Status: UNCITRAL  Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records (2017) .  
5 Shepherd and Duval (2014): Estimating the benefits of cross -border paperless trade . 
6 Lopez -Gonzalez  and Sorescu (2019) : Helping SMEs internationalise through trade facilitation . 
7 Korinek, Moïsé , and Tange  (2021) : Trade and Gender : A framework for analysis . 
8 Commonwealth Secretariat (2022): Quantitative Analysis of the Move to Paperless Trade . WT/GC/W/870  
 
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  Documents Bill9 in October 2022. The Bill will place digital trade documents on the same legal footing 
as their paper -based equivalents. This will give UK business more choice and flexibility in how they 
trade. In addition, the Bill  will cut processing times for electronic documents to 20 seconds and 
reduce carbon emissions by at least 10 per cent. UK legal reform, in line with the UNCITRAL Model 
Law on Electronic Transferable Records (2017), is aimed to act as a significant catalyst  towards 
global legal reform. Such reform will foster the development of an electronic trade document 
ecosystem. Under its 2021 G7 Presidency, the UK secured agreement among G7 countries to work 
together to progress coordinated legal reforms in line with t his Model Law.  
4.2.  The International Chamber of Commerce estimates that digitalising transferable documents in 
the UK could reduce the number of days needed for processing documents by up to 75 per cent, 
free up GBP 224 billion in efficiency savings, and gene rate GBP 1 billion to tackle the trade finance 
gap.10 The Digital Container Shipping Association estimates that if 50 per cent of the container 
shipping industry adopted electronic bills of lading, the collective global savings would be around 
GBP 3.6 bill ion (USD 4 billion) per year .11 
5  CONCLUSION  
5.1.  Digitalising trade is increasingly perceived as a key endeavour for governments around the 
world, given the pivotal role of technology in the 21st century. Trade digitalisation offers numerous 
benefits for busines ses, especially MSMEs and women led businesses. These include reducing export 
time and costs, increasing the probability of starting to export, and accelerating border processes.   
5.2.  To truly unlock the transformational potential of trade digitalisation glob ally, it is vital that 
governments enact compatible, transparent, and inclusive legislative and regulatory frameworks. 
Implementing such frameworks that are in line with global best precedent, such as the UNCITRAL 
Model Laws on E -Commerce (1996) and on Ele ctronic Transferable Records (2017), will help to 
develop a compatible global ecosystem for trade digitalisation. This will benefit businesses 
and consumers.   
6  GUIDING QUESTIONS  
6.1.  Considering the issues outlined in this communication, we offer the following guiding questions 
to Members and invite them to share their experiences on trade digitalisation.  
1. What are Members ' experiences on trade digitalisation?  
2. What benefits can trade digitalisation bring to MSMEs and women led businesses?  
3. What are Members ' experiences with UNCITRAL Model Laws on E -Commerce and 
Electronic Transferable Records?  
  
 
9 Electronic Trade Documents Bill [HL]  
10 ICC (2021): Cutting the Cost and Complexity of Trade: Reforming Laws and Harmonising Legal 
Frameworks  
11 DCSA: Streamlining international trade by digitalising end -to-end documentation  WT/GC/W/870  
 
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  Bibliography  
Commonwealth Secretariat (2022): Quantitative Analysis of the Move to Paperless Trade; 
https://thecommonwealth.org/quantitative -analysis -move -paperless -trade   
 
DCSA (not dated): Streamlining international trade by digitalising end -to-end documentation; 
https://dcsa.org/newsroom/resources/streamlining -international -trade/   
 
ICC (2021): Cutting the Cost and Complexity of Trade: Reforming Laws and Harmonising Legal 
Frameworks; 
https://www.dsi.iccwbo.org/_files/ugd/0b6be5_9a983b7c954d49389dd25a54033bcf78.pdf?index=
true [PDF link]  
 
Korinek, J., E. Moïsé and J. Tange (2021): Trade and gender: A Framework of analysis; 
https://doi.org/10.1787/6db59d80 -en  
 
López González, J. and S. Sorescu (2019): Helping SMEs internationalise through trade facilitation; 
https://doi.org/10.1787/2050e6b0 -en  
 
Parliament.UK (2023): Electronic Trade Documents Bill [HL]; https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/3344   
Shepherd and Duval (2014): Estimating the benefits of cross -border paperless trade; 
https://www.unescap.org/sites/default/files/Benefits%20of%20Cross -
Border %20Paperless%20Trade.pdf   
 
UNCITRAL (no date): Status: UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Commerce (1996); 
https://uncitral.un.org/en/texts/ecommerce/modellaw/elec tronic_commerce/status   
 
UNCITRAL (no date): Status: UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Transferable Records (2017); 
https://uncitral.un.org/en/texts/e commerce/modellaw/electronic_transferable_records/status   
 
UN/CEFACT (2017): White Paper, Paperless Trade, Version 1; 
https://unece.org/fileadmin /DAM/cefact/GuidanceMaterials/WhitePapers/WP -
PaperlessTrade_Eng.pdf  [PDF link]  
 
WTO (2015): World Trade Report 2015; 
https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/booksp_e/world_trad e_report15_e.pdf  [PDF link]  
 
 
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