CONVENTION ON THE CONTROL AND MARKING
OF ARTICLES OF PRECIOUS METALS
(without Annexes)
Consolidated text
(Agreed by the Standing
Committee on 9 January 2001)
PREAMBLE
The Republic of
Austria, the Republic of Finland, the Kingdom of Norway, the Portuguese
Republic, the Kingdom of Sweden, the Swiss Confederation and the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Northern Ireland*;
Desiring to
facilitate international trade in articles of precious metals while at the same
time maintaining consumer protection justified by the particular nature of
these articles;
Considering
that the international harmonisation of standards and technical regulations and
guidelines for methods and procedures for the control and marking of precious
metal articles is a valuable contribution to the free movement of such
products;
Considering
that this harmonisation should be supplemented by mutual recognition of control
and marking and desiring therefore to promote and maintain co-operation between
their assay offices and concerned authorities;
Having regard
to the fact that compulsory hallmarking is not required from the Contracting
States to the Convention and that the marking of articles of precious metals
with the Convention marks is carried out on a voluntary basis;
Have agreed as
follows:
I Scope and Operation
ARTICLE
1
1. Articles
controlled and marked by an authorised assay office in accordance with the
provisions of this Convention shall not be submitted to further compulsory
assaying or marking in an importing Contracting State. This does not prevent an
importing Contracting State from carrying out check tests in accordance with
Article 6.
2. Nothing in
this Convention shall require a Contracting State to allow the importation or
sale of articles of precious metals which are not defined in its national
legislation or do not comply with its national standards of fineness.
ARTICLE 2
For the
purposes of this Convention „articles of precious metals“ means articles of
platinum, gold, palladium, silver, or alloys thereof, as defined in Annex I.
ARTICLE
3
1. In order to
benefit from the provisions of Article 1, articles of precious metals must:
( a) be
submitted to an authorised assay office appointed in accordance with Article 5;
( b) fulfil
the technical requirements of this Convention as laid down in Annex I;
( c) be
controlled in accordance with the rules and procedures laid down in Annex II;
( d) be
marked with the marks as prescribed in Annex II.
2. The benefits
of Article 1 shall not be applicable to articles of precious metals which,
after being marked as prescribed in Annex II, have had any of these marks
altered or obliterated.
ARTICLE
4
The Contracting
States shall not be obliged to apply the provisions of paragraph 1 of
Article 1 to articles of precious metals which, since being submitted to an
authorised assay office, and controlled and marked as prescribed in
Article 3, have been altered by addition or in any other manner.
II Control and Sanctions
ARTICLE
5
1. Each
Contracting State shall appoint one or more authorised assay offices for the control
and marking of articles of precious metals as provided for in Annex II.
2. The
authorised assay offices shall satisfy the following conditions:
- availability of staff
and of the necessary means and equipment;
- technical competence and professional integrity
of the staff;
- in carrying out the requirements of the
Convention, the management and technical staff of the authorised assay office
must be independent of all circles, grouping or persons with direct or indirect
interest in the area concerned;
- staff must be bound by professional secrecy.
3. Each
Contracting State shall notify the depositary of the appointment of such assay
offices and of their marks and any withdrawal of this authorisation from any
assay office previously appointed. The depositary shall immediately notify all
other Contracting States accordingly.
ARTICLE
6
The provisions
of this Convention shall not prevent a Contracting State from carrying out
check tests on articles of precious metals bearing the marks provided for in this
Convention. Such tests shall not be carried out in such a way as to hamper
unduly the importation or sale of articles of precious metals marked in
conformity with the provisions of this Convention.
ARTICLE
7
The Contracting
States hereby empower the depositary to register with the World Intellectual
Property Organisation (WIPO), in accordance with the Convention of Paris for
the Protection of Industrial Property, the Common Control Mark described in
Annex II as a national hallmark of each Contracting State. The depositary shall
also do so in the case of a Contracting State in relation to which this
Convention enters into force at a later date or in the case of an acceding
State.
ARTICLE
8
1. Each
Contracting State shall have and maintain legislation prohibiting, subject to
penalties, any forgery, unauthorised alteration or misuse of the Common Control
Mark or of the marks of the authorised assay offices which have been notified
in accordance with paragraph 3 of Article 5, and any unauthorised alteration to
the article or alteration or obliteration of the fineness mark or
responsibility mark after the Common Control Mark has been applied.
2. Each
Contracting State undertakes to institute proceedings under such legislation
when sufficient evidence of forgery or misuse of the Common Control Mark or
marks of the authorised assay offices, or unauthorised alteration to the
article or alteration or obliteration of the fineness mark or responsibility
mark after the Common Control Mark has been applied is discovered or brought to
its attention by another Contracting State or, where more appropriate, to take
other suitable action.
ARTICLE
9
1. If an
importing Contracting State or one of its authorised assay offices has reason
to believe that an assay office in an exporting Contracting State has affixed
the Common Control Mark without having complied with the relevant provisions of
this Convention, the assay office by which the articles are purported to have
been marked shall be immediately consulted and shall promptly lend all
reasonable assistance for the investigation of the case. If no satisfactory
settlement is reached, either of the parties may refer the case to the Standing
Committee by notifying its Chairman. In such a case the Chairman shall convene
a meeting of the Standing Committee.
2. If any
matter has been referred to the Standing Committee under paragraph 1, the
Standing Committee may, after having given an opportunity for the parties
concerned to be heard, make recommendations as to the appropriate action to be
taken.
3. If within a
reasonable time a recommendation referred to in paragraph 2 has not been
complied with, or the Standing Committee has failed to make any recommendation,
the importing Contracting State may then introduce such additional surveillance
of articles of precious metals marked by that particular assay office and
entering its territory, as it considers necessary, including the right
temporarily to refuse to accept such articles. Such measures shall immediately
be notified to all Contracting States and shall be reviewed from time to time
by the Standing Committee.
4. Where there
is evidence of repeated and grave misapplication of the Common Control Mark the
importing Contracting State may temporarily refuse to accept articles bearing
the assay office mark of the assay office concerned whether or not controlled
and marked in accordance with this Convention. In such a case the importing
Contracting State shall immediately notify all other Contracting States and the
Standing Committee shall meet within one month to consider the matter.
III Standing Committee and Amendments
ARTICLE
10
1. A Standing
Committee is hereby established on which each Contracting State shall be
represented. Each Contracting State shall have one vote.
2. The tasks of
the Standing Committee shall be:
to
consider and review the operation of this Convention;
to
review and, where necessary, propose amendments to the Annexes to this
Convention;
to
take decisions on technical matters, as provided for in the Annexes;
to
promote and maintain technical and administrative co-operation between the Contracting
States in matters dealt with by this Convention;
to
consider measures for securing uniform interpretation and application of the
provisions of this Convention;
to
encourage the adequate protection of the marks against forgery and misuse;
to
make recommendations in the case of any matter referred to it under the
provisions of paragraph 2 of Article 9, or for the settlement of any
dispute arising out of the operation of this Convention which is presented to
the Standing Committee;
to
examine whether the arrangements of a State interested in acceding to this
Convention comply with the conditions of the Convention and its Annexes and to
make a report in that respect for consideration by the Contracting States.
3. The Standing
Committee shall adopt rules of procedure for its meeting including rules for
the convening of such meetings. This Committee shall meet at least once a year.
4. In
accordance with paragraph 2 above, the Standing Committee shall take decisions
on technical matters, as provided for in the Annexes, by unanimous vote.
5. The Standing
Committee may make recommendations on any question relating to the
implementation of this Convention or make proposals for the amendment of this
Convention. Such recommendations or proposals shall be transmitted to the
depositary which shall notify all Contracting States.
ARTICLE
11
Amendment
to the Convention
1. In the case
of a proposal received from the Standing Committee for the amendment of the
Articles to the Convention, or in the case of a proposal for amendment of the
Convention received from a Contracting State, the depositary shall submit such
proposals for acceptance to all Contracting States.
2. If within
three months from the date of the submission of a proposal for amendment under
paragraph 1 a Contracting State requests that negotiations be opened on
the proposal, the depositary shall arrange for such negotiations to be held.
3. Provided it
is accepted by all Contracting States, an amendment to this Convention shall
enter into force one month after deposit of the last instrument of acceptance
unless another date is provided for in the amendment. Instruments of acceptance
shall be deposited with the depositary which shall notify all Contracting
States.
Amendment
to the Annexes
4. In the case
of a proposal made by the Standing Committee for amendment of the Annexes to
the Convention, the depositary shall notify all Contracting States.
5. The
amendment to the Annexes shall come into force six months after the date of
notification by the depositary unless an objection has been received from the
Government of a Contracting State or unless a later date for its entry into
force has been provided for in the amendment.
IV Final Provisions
Accession
ARTICLE
12
1. Any State
being a Member of the United Nations or of any of the specialised agencies or
of the International Atomic Energy Agency or a Party to the Statute of the
International Court of Justice and having arrangements for the assay and
marking of articles of precious metals necessary to comply with the
requirements of the Convention and its Annexes may, upon invitation of the
Contracting States to be transmitted by the depositary, accede to this
Convention.
2. The
Governments of the Contracting States shall notify their reply to the
depositary within four months after receipt of the request by the depositary
asking them whether they agree to the invitation. Any Government not replying
within that period shall be deemed to have consented to the invitation.
3. The
Governments of the Contracting States shall base their decision whether to
invite a State to accede primarily on the report referred to in paragraph 2 of
Article 10.
4. The invited
State may accede to this Convention by depositing an instrument of accession
with the depositary which shall notify all other Contracting States. The
accession shall become effective three months after deposit of that instrument.
ARTICLE
13
1. The
Government of any signatory or acceding State may, when depositing its
instrument of ratification or accession, or at any time thereafter, declare in
writing to the depositary that this Convention shall apply to all or part of
the territories, designated in the declaration, for the external relations of
which it is responsible. The depositary shall communicate any such declaration
to the Governments of all other Contracting States.
2. If the
declaration was made at the time of the deposit of the instrument of
ratification or accession this Convention shall enter into force in relation to
those territories on the same date as the Convention enters into force in
relation to the State having made the declaration. In all other cases the
Convention shall enter into force in relation to those territories three months
after the declaration has been received by the depositary.
3. The
application of this Convention to all or part of such territories may be
terminated by the Government of the State having made the declaration referred
to in paragraph 1 provided that it gives three months' notice in writing
to the depositary which shall notify all other Contracting States.
Withdrawal
ARTICLE
14
Any Contracting
State may withdraw from this Convention provided that it gives twelve months'
notice in writing to the depositary which shall notify all Contracting States,
or on such other terms as may be agreed upon by the Contracting States. Each
Contracting State undertakes that, in the event of its withdrawal from the
Convention, it will cease after withdrawal to use or apply the Common Control
Mark for any purpose.
Ratification
ARTICLE
15
1. This
Convention shall be ratified by the signatory States. The instruments of
ratification shall be deposited with the depositary which shall notify all
other signatory States.
2. This
Convention shall enter into force four months after deposit of the fourth
instrument of ratification. In relation to any other signatory State depositing
subsequently its instrument of ratification this Convention shall enter into
force two months after the date of deposit but not before the expiry of the
above-mentioned period of four months.
In witness
thereof the undersigned, duly authorised thereto, have signed the present
Convention.
Done in Vienna
this 15th day of November 1972, in a single copy in the English and
French languages, both texts being equally authentic, which shall be deposited
with the Government of Sweden, by which certified copies shall be transmitted
to all other signatory and acceding States.
Here follow the
signatures of the representatives of Austria, Finland, Norway, Portugal, Sweden,
Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
* The following States have acceded to the Convention: Ireland (8.11.1983), Denmark (17.01.1988), Czech Republic (2.11.1994) and the Netherlands (16.07.1999).