Article 63 of the Saudi Commercial Court Law
المادة 63 من النظام التجاري نظام المحكمة التجارية · الفصل السابع: في تحويل السفاتج المعبر عنه بالجيرو
The article prohibits putting dates in transfers ahead of their true date, and treats that as forgery if it occurs.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
تقديم التواريخ في التحاويل عن تاريخها الحقيقي ممنوع وإن حصل يعد ذلك تزويرا .
This is the official Arabic wording, the only legally binding version. We do not translate the law itself; the explanation below is ours. Official source: Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers
Article 63 explained in plain English
This article protects the truthfulness of the date in transfers of bills of exchange, and lays down two rulings:
- The prohibition: putting dates in transfers ahead of their true date is prohibited.
- The description: if it occurs, it is treated as forgery.
"Putting the date ahead" means writing in the transfer a date earlier than the date on which the transfer actually took place. The Law treated that as forgery because the date of the transfer is not a mere formal particular: the date fixes when ownership passes, and rights of third parties may depend on it.
Note that the text speaks specifically of putting the date ahead, that is, making it earlier than the true date. The article does not specify the penalty for forgery itself, so the amount of the sanction cannot be inferred from it.
This article connects to Article 62, which makes an incomplete transfer an ordinary authorization to collect the value, and to Article 64, which permits guaranteeing payment of the value of the bill by way of an additional guarantee. All of them are provisions aimed at protecting confidence in the circulation of bills of exchange.
If you discover that the date of a transfer of a bill has been put ahead, or you have been accused of that, consult a lawyer specializing in this field immediately.
Practical example
A merchant in Riyadh transferred a bill of exchange to another person on the 20th of the month, but wrote in the transfer the date of the 5th of the month. This is putting the date ahead of its true date, which is prohibited and is treated as forgery under this article.
Translated from our Arabic explanation with machine assistance. For guidance only; it does not replace advice from a lawyer on your situation.
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Frequently asked questions about Article 63 of the Saudi Commercial Court Law
May an earlier date be written in the endorsement of a bill of exchange?
No. Putting dates in transfers ahead of their true date is prohibited, and if it occurs it is treated as forgery.
What is the penalty for putting the date ahead?
The article treats the act as forgery and does not itself specify the penalty.
More articles on Endorsement, Payment and Recourse on the Draft
- Article 51
The article makes the drawer of a bill of exchange and the endorsers who transferred it jointly liable for its acceptance and for payment on time, and jointly bound to pay its holder.
صاحب السفتجة والمحيلون المتناقلون لها مسئولون على وجه التضامن عن القبول والدفع في ميعاده وملزمون لحاملها بالوفاء على وجه التضامن
- Article 57
The article provides that the intervener is not bound to pay the bill's value on the due date except after notice of non-payment has been given within the set time.
لا يجب على المتوسط المذكور دفع قيمة السفتجة في ميعاد استحقاق الدفع إلا بعد عمل الإخطار بعدم الدفع في الميعاد المحدود .
- Article 60
The article provides that ownership of bills of exchange passes from one person to another by transferring them by endorsement on them.
تنتقل ملكية السفاتج من واحد لآخر بتحويلها شرحا عليها .
- Article 61
The article sets the particulars of a bill's transfer: the date, a statement that value has been received, the name and surname of the person to whose order it passes, and the endorser's signature or seal.
يؤرخ تحويل السفتجة ويذكر فيها أن قيمتها وصلت ويبين فيها اسم وشهرة من انتقلت تحت إذنه ويضع المحيل إمضاءه أو ختمه .
- Article 62
The article provides that a transfer of a bill of exchange that does not meet the conditions of Article 61 does not pass ownership but counts as an ordinary authorization to collect its value.
إذا لم يستوف تحويل السفتجة شرائطه المبينة في المادة السابقة فلا يوجب انتقال الملك بل يعد توكيلا اعتياديا في قبض قيمتها .
- Article 64
The article permits payment of a bill's value, besides being secured by acceptance and transfer, to be guaranteed by a person as a guarantee in support, written on the bill itself or on a separate paper.
دفع قيمة السفتجة علاوة على كونه مضمونا بالقبول والتحويل يجوز ضمانه من شخص ضمانا احتياطيا ويكون ذلك بكتابه على نفس السفتجة أو في ورقة مستقلة .
The texts are reproduced from the official website of the Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers for reference; where they differ, the officially published Arabic text prevails. This content is not legal advice.