HKIAC Arbitration Procedure: From Clause Review to Notice of Arbitration

You paid a deposit to a Chinese supplier, but delivery keeps slipping. The supplier first promised a refund and then stopped replying. The contract contains an HKIAC arbitration clause, so you plan to send the contract and bank receipt to the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre and demand immediate repayment.

Do not file yet.

A Notice of Arbitration can start the procedure. It cannot correct the wrong respondent, an ambiguous clause, duplicated losses, or an unusable service address. The safer order is to verify the clause and parties, turn the commercial loss into claims the tribunal can decide, build the evidence and asset map, and only then file, pay, and serve the Notice. If Mainland assets are moving, the interim-measures application should be prepared at the same time.

First confirm whether HKIAC will administer the dispute

Do not merely search the contract for “HKIAC.” Read the entire dispute-resolution clause and identify:

• whether the arbitration is expressly administered by HKIAC;
• whether the seat is Hong Kong;
• which version of the HKIAC Rules applies;
• the language of the arbitration; and
• the governing law of the contract and of the arbitration agreement.

The 2024 HKIAC Administered Arbitration RulesHKIAC | Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre2024 Administered Arbitration Rules - HKIAC | Hong Kong International Arbitration Centrehttps://hkiac.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/HKIAC_2024_Rules_05.mp4 The 2024 HKIAC Administered Arbitration Rules may be viewed in PDF format through the link…hkiac.org↗ generally apply when a Notice is submitted on or after 1 June 2024, unless the parties agree otherwise. If the seat is not agreed, Hong Kong is the default unless the tribunal considers another seat more appropriate. Before the procedural language is fixed, communications may be in English or Chinese.

These are not formatting details. The seat determines the supervisory court and procedural law, and can affect access to Mainland interim measures. The language directly affects translation, counsel, and tribunal costs.

Multiple transaction documents create another problem. Do the master agreement, purchase orders, pro forma invoices, quality agreement, and supplementary orders use the same clause? If the master agreement says HKIAC but a later purchase order names a Mainland court, resolve that conflict before assuming every claim belongs in one arbitration.

The arbitration clause is separable from the main contract. An allegation that the main contract is invalid does not automatically invalidate the clause. But separability does not make every affiliate that received funds or shipped goods a party to the arbitration agreement.

Identifying the correct respondent matters more than drafting legal argument first

Cross-border purchases often involve an English quotation from one company, a pro forma invoice naming another, payment to a Hong Kong or Mainland affiliate, and shipment by a third entity.

Before filing, answer four questions:

1. Who signed or accepted the contract by conduct?
2. Who received the payment?
3. Who promised production, delivery, cure, or refund?
4. Who holds assets against which an award could be enforced?

For a Mainland company, verify its registered Chinese name, Unified Social Credit Code, business licence, company chop, account name, and registered address. An Alibaba store name, English trading name, or salesperson’s email signature can point to the wrong respondent.

If an affiliate received payment, determine whether it acted as collection agent, co-contracting party, guarantor, or separate trader. Common ownership alone is not a basis for adding an entire group to the arbitration.

Turn “the supplier will not refund” into quantifiable relief

The Notice must describe the general nature and amount of the dispute and the relief sought. Break the complaint into specific items, such as:

• repayment of the advance attributable to undelivered goods;
• the reasonable difference in replacement-purchase cost;
• inspection, rework, or disposal loss caused by non-conforming goods;
• interest under the contract or applicable law;
• arbitration costs and reasonable legal fees; or
• delivery, return of tooling, or another act where the order can be enforced precisely.

Each item should have an amount, currency, period, contractual or legal basis, and evidence. A refund and replacement-cost difference may both be claimed, but they cannot compensate the same loss twice. Interest should state the start date, rate, and basis rather than demand “the highest rate.”

Also ask a commercial question: will the supplier still have assets when an award is made? Bank records, factory addresses, equity, equipment, inventory, and receivables affect whether arbitration is worth the cost and whether interim measures should be pursued.

Connect each claim to evidence in one table

Before drafting the Notice, create a fact-claim-evidence table. A supply-chain case commonly requires:

Contract formation. Master agreements, purchase orders, pro forma invoices, quotations, specifications, sample approvals, amendments, chops, and authority records.

Payment and performance. Bank records, receipt confirmations, invoices, production updates, delivery dates, bills of lading, customs records, inspection reports, and tests.

Breach and loss. Demands, delay or refund promises, reasons for refusal, replacement quotations, rework and storage costs, and mitigation steps.

Electronic communications. Complete emails, WeChat, WhatsApp, and platform chats with account identity, dates, attachments, and context. Do not preserve only favourable screenshots; see the guide to preserving WeChat evidence.

Under the HKIAC Rules, a party bears the burden of proving the facts on which it relies , while the tribunal decides admissibility, relevance, materiality, and weight. The entire case need not be proved at the Notice stage, but filing does not repair a broken evidence chain.

What the Notice of Arbitration must contain

Under Article 4 of the 2024 Rules , the Notice should include at least:

• a request to refer the dispute to arbitration;
• contact details for the parties and their representatives;
• the arbitration agreement invoked;
• the contract or other legal instrument giving rise to the dispute;
• the general nature and amount of the dispute;
• the relief sought;
• a reasoned proposal for one or three arbitrators;
• a proposed sole arbitrator or the claimant’s designation for a three-member tribunal;
• third-party funding disclosure; and
• confirmation that the Notice has been served on the respondent and how it was served.

The registration fee must also be paid. For current amounts, see the HKIAC fee guide and fee calculator.

The claimant may submit a full Statement of Claim with the Notice, but need not do so. Filing both can avoid repetition when facts and evidence are mature. When assets are moving, a complete but restrained Notice followed by the Statement of Claim on the tribunal’s timetable may be more sensible.

If the Notice is incomplete or the registration fee is unpaid, HKIAC may set a cure period. A timely cure may preserve the original commencement date. Missing the deadline can mean the arbitration is deemed not to have commenced, although the claimant may file again.

Service creates two different dates

The claimant must send the Notice to HKIAC and the respondent at the same time. HKIAC’s receipt date is the commencement date. The respondent’s receipt date generally starts its 30-day period for the Answer. Do not put them in the same calendar field.

Preserve the original email and headers, attachment list, transmission record, courier waybill, source of each address, tracking and signature data, and a separate receipt date for every respondent. The Rules permit delivery to a notified, contractual, publicly held, or last-known address. After reasonable efforts, a documented attempt at the last-known address may be deemed received , but the result depends on the evidence. The claimant must tell HKIAC the actual receipt date and provide verification.

Periods generally start the day after receipt, include intervening holidays, and roll forward only when the last day is an official holiday or non-business day at the place of receipt. Different time zones and multiple recipients require separate date calculations.

Decide tribunal, deposits, and interim measures before filing

A sole arbitrator is usually less expensive and easier to schedule. Three arbitrators can offer broader legal or industry experience but increase cost and coordination. If the parties have not agreed within 30 days after the respondent receives the Notice, HKIAC determines the number in light of the case.

HKIAC generally asks the parties to pay equal deposits. If one party does not pay, the other may substitute the payment to prevent the relevant claim from being suspended, and later ask the tribunal to order reimbursement. Before filing, assess whether you can temporarily carry the other side’s share.

Depending on the amount, party agreement, or exceptional urgency, consider expedited procedure or an emergency arbitrator. If the objective is to freeze Mainland bank accounts or other property , assess Mainland court measures separately; see freezing Mainland supplier assets before HKIAC arbitration.

After filing, commencement does not prove the claim

The respondent generally submits an Answer within 30 days after receipt, addressing jurisdiction, the dispute and relief, tribunal composition, and possible counterclaims or set-off. Deposits, tribunal formation, a procedural timetable, pleadings, documents and witnesses, and then a hearing or documents-only decision follow.

A failure to answer does not give the claimant an automatic win. The arbitration may continue on the available evidence, but the claimant must still prove its case. Settlement can occur at any stage. It may lead to termination or, where appropriate, a consent award, depending on enforcement needs, wording, and cost.

Start in this order, not with an aggressive notice

Read the full clause, identify the correct respondent, quantify the claim, and build the evidence and asset map. File and pay only when service addresses, tribunal direction, budget, and interim-measures timing work together.

This order cannot guarantee success, but it reduces the risk of beginning with the wrong party, date, or remedy.

Conclusion

HKIAC arbitration does not begin with filling in a form. It begins by verifying six things: the clause, respondent, amount, evidence, service, and assets. The Notice starts the procedure; it cannot cure an incorrect party, vague relief, or an unsupported case. Any Mainland interim-measures plan belongs on the same timetable and budget.

If one of those points remains uncertain, a coordinated review before filing will usually control time, cost, and enforcement risk better than a cure after commencement.

For an assessment, prepare the contract and arbitration clause, amount in dispute, supplier’s registered Chinese name, payment and breach evidence, and known asset locations, then contact me. Use the ordinary contact form for a short case summary only; do not send complete sensitive documents through an unencrypted form.

References

This is Part 1 of the “HKIAC Arbitration” series. For institutional background, read What Is HKIAC?. If assets may disappear, continue with freezing Mainland supplier assets before HKIAC arbitration.