Article 21 of the Saudi Commercial Papers Law

المادة 21 من نظام الأوراق التجارية · الفصل الثالث: قبول الكمبيالة

Article 21 allows the holder or any possessor of a bill of exchange to present it to the drawee for acceptance until its due date, and regulates the conditions the drawer and endorsers may set on presentment for acceptance.

Official text (Arabic)

This article has not been amended since the law was issued.

يجوز لحامل الكمبيالة أو لأي حائز لها حتى ميعاد استحقاقها أن يقدمها إلى المسحوب عليه في موطنه لقبولها.

ويجوز لساحب الكمبيالة أن يضمنها شرط تقديمها للقبول في ميعاد معين أو بغير ميعاد وله أن يضمنها شرط عدم تقديمها للقبول ما لم تكن مستحقة الوفاء عند غير المسحوب عليه أو في جهة أخرى غير موطنه أو مستحقة الوفاء بعد مدة معينة من الاطلاع عليها. وله أن يشترط عدم تقديمها للقبول قبل أجل معين.

ولكل مظهر أن يشترط تقديمها للقبول في ميعاد معين أو بغير ميعاد، ما لم يكن الساحب قد اشترط عدم تقديمها للقبول.

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 21 explained in plain English

Acceptance of a bill of exchange means that the drawee agrees to pay it on its due date. This article regulates presentment of the bill for acceptance as follows:

First: the right to present. The holder of the bill of exchange or any possessor of it may, until its due date, present it to the drawee at his or her domicile for acceptance.

Second: the drawer's conditions. The drawer may include in the bill:

A condition that it be presented for acceptance within a specified period or without a period.
A condition that it not be presented for acceptance, unless it is payable at a person other than the drawee, or at a place other than the drawee's domicile, or at a fixed period after sight; in these cases the drawer may not include this condition.
A condition that it not be presented for acceptance before a specified date.

Third: the endorsers' conditions. Every endorser may stipulate that it be presented for acceptance within a specified period or without a period, unless the drawer has stipulated that it not be presented for acceptance.

The practical benefit is that the holder learns early whether the drawee will undertake to pay or not. Article 22 then sets the period for presenting for acceptance a bill payable at a fixed period after sight.

To find out the consequences of breaching these conditions in a particular case, you can consult a lawyer specializing in commercial cases and commercial papers.

Practical example

A company in Riyadh received a bill of exchange drawn on a merchant in Jeddah, containing no condition about acceptance. Under Article 21, the company may present it to the merchant at his domicile for acceptance at any time until its due date.

Translated from our Arabic explanation with machine assistance. For guidance only; it does not replace advice from a lawyer on your situation.

How we write and review content

A question about Article 21 of Commercial Papers Law?

Describe what happened and specialist lawyers answer. You can write in English.