Xiamen recently introduced guidelines for handling foreign trade disputes for foreign trade enterprises, marking China's first comprehensive guide for managing such disputes.

The guidelines cover 57 aspects, offering operational advice, compliance risk alerts, and risk mitigation strategies. They advise enterprises to utilize resources like the Maritime Silk Road Law Ascertainment Center to understand foreign laws, research trade policies, intellectual property regulations, and investment protection agreements in target countries or regions to avoid legal pitfalls. 

When drafting contracts, enterprises are encouraged to incorporate clauses such as Xiamen International Commercial Tribunal Consensual Jurisdiction Model Clauses and the Model Arbitration Clause, or opt for the Xiamen Maritime Court's jurisdiction agreements.

The guidelines list 14 local public service institutions and platforms available to Xiamen's foreign trade enterprises, including the Xiamen International Commercial Tribunal of Fujian Province, Xiamen Maritime Court, Xiamen Arbitration Commission, and Maritime Silk Road International Arbitration Promotion Center, offering legal services such as legal investigations and dispute resolution.

Furthermore, the guidelines provide three model clauses for dispute jurisdiction—Xiamen International Commercial Tribunal Consensual Jurisdiction Model Clauses, the Model Arbitration Claus, and the ACAS Model Arbitration Clause—for reference by Xiamen's foreign trade enterprises.