The General Assembly of the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT) has decided to establish the UNIDROIT Asia-Pacific Liaison Office in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

The office is expected to open at the Hong Kong Legal Hub in the second half of 2026, marking the first regional presence of UNIDROIT outside its seat in Rome in its 100-year history.

The Government noted that hosting UNIDROIT's first overseas office in Hong Kong is a significant milestone for the city's development as a legal hub, as it reflects the international community's continued confidence in the Hong Kong SAR's legal system and reinforces its position as a leading international legal hub.

Noting that the office at the Hong Kong Legal Hub will establish UNIDROIT’s permanent presence in the Asia-Pacific region, the Government said it could also contribute to facilitating co-ordination and creating synergies among the "three sisters of private international law", namely UNIDROIT, the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH), and the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL).  

The Hong Kong Legal Hub has already housed the HCCH Regional Office for Asia ＆ the Pacific and the Department of Justice (DoJ) Project Office for Collaboration with UNCITRAL.

The DoJ submitted the proposal for the establishment of the office to the secretariat of UNIDROIT, with the support of the Central People's Government. In May, the UNIDROIT Governing Council expressed support for the proposal and recommended it to the General Assembly, which accepted the recommendation at its 85th session, held on December 11.

China has been a member of UNIDROIT since 1986, and the Hong Kong SAR has participated in its work as part of the Chinese delegation. It is anticipated that the establishment of the office in 2026 will further strengthen the existing collaborative relationship between the DoJ and UNIDROIT.

UNIDROIT is an independent intergovernmental organisation with 65 member states. The institute’s aim is to study the needs and methods to modernise, harmonise and co-ordinate private and, in particular, commercial law among states and groups of states and to formulate uniform law instruments, principles and rules to achieve those objectives.