Ad Hoc Arbitration Comes to Central China: The Hunan FTZ Guide of 26 August 2026

2026-08-28 国际仲裁

  • On 26 August 2026 the Guide to Ad Hoc Arbitration in the China (Hunan) Pilot Free Trade Zone was released in Changsha — the first ad hoc arbitration practice guide for a FTZ in central China, jointly issued by the CCPIT Hunan Sub-council, the Hunan High People’s Court, the Hunan Provincial Department of Commerce (FTZ Office) and the CIETAC China-Africa Hearing Centre.
    2026 年 8 月 26 日，《中国（湖南）自由贸易试验区临时仲裁指南》在长沙发布——这是中部地区首部自贸试验区临时仲裁实践指引，由湖南省贸促会、湖南省高级人民法院、湖南省商务厅（省自贸办）与中国国际经济贸易仲裁委员会中非庭审中心联合发布。
  • The Guide turns the ad hoc arbitration provisions of the revised Arbitration Law (effective 1 March 2026) into a workable playbook: it clarifies the applicable conditions, filing requirements and judicial interface for ad hoc arbitration between enterprises in the FTZ, and ensures the international enforceability of awards.
    《指南》把新修订《仲裁法》（2026 年 3 月 1 日施行）确立的临时仲裁制度转化为可操作指引：厘清自贸试验区内企业间临时仲裁的适用条件、备案要求与司法衔接规则，确保裁决的国际可执行性。
  • It covers the core elements — seat of arbitration, composition of the tribunal and procedural support — and provides model arbitration clauses and practical guidance for advanced manufacturing, trade with Africa and the overseas expansion of construction-machinery companies.
    指引明确仲裁地、仲裁庭组成、程序配套等核心要素，并针对先进制造业、对非贸易、工程机械出海等重点领域提供仲裁条款示范文本与实务指引。
  • The CIETAC China-Africa Hearing Centre is designated as the appointing authority able to provide arbitrator appointment, challenge decisions and case-secretary support, balancing flexibility with procedural rigour.
    贸仲中非庭审中心作为指定机构可提供仲裁员指定、回避决定、案件秘书等程序辅助服务，在保障灵活性的同时守住规范性底线。
  • For foreign parties contracting with Hunan FTZ enterprises, the Guide matters because ad hoc arbitration is now a real option for cross-border disputes: arbitration seated in China, conducted under party-chosen rules, with a designated institution standing by for procedural support.
    对与湖南自贸区企业签约的外方，本指南之所以重要，是因为临时仲裁现已成为跨境争议的真实选项：仲裁地在中国、按当事人选定规则进行、有指定机构提供程序支持。

Ad Hoc Arbitration Comes to Central China: The Hunan FTZ Guide of 26 August 2026 | 临时仲裁落地中部：湖南自贸区《临时仲裁指南》解读

What the Guide is

On 26 August 2026, at the High-Level Dialogue on Commercial Arbitration Helping Hunan’s Business-Environment Development in Changsha, the CCPIT Hunan Sub-council, the Hunan High People’s Court, the Hunan Provincial Department of Commerce (FTZ Office) and the CIETAC China-Africa Hearing Centre jointly released the Guide to Ad Hoc Arbitration in the China (Hunan) Pilot Free Trade Zone (the “Guide”). It is the first FTZ ad hoc arbitration practice guide in central China. The Guide systematically sets out the legal basis, procedural rules and practical considerations for foreign and Chinese enterprises in the Hunan FTZ to resolve disputes through ad hoc arbitration, and provides operating guidance for ad hoc arbitration that fits China’s legal context while aligning with international practice.

The legal foundation

Ad hoc arbitration — arbitration conducted without the administration of a standing arbitral institution, with the tribunal and procedure agreed by the parties — was formally established in Chinese law by the revised Arbitration Law, which took effect on 1 March 2026. The Law provides that disputes between enterprises within a pilot free trade zone may be submitted to ad hoc arbitration seated in China. The Hunan provincial authorities moved quickly: in July 2026 the provincial implementation plan for the FTZ upgrade explicitly supported enterprises in the Hunan FTZ choosing ad hoc arbitration. The Guide operationalises that support, and in doing so sits on a clear chain of authority: the revised Arbitration Law, the Supreme People’s Court’s judicial-protection opinion for FTZ construction, and the provincial plan.

What the Guide covers

The Guide clarifies three core elements. First, the seat: parties define the place of arbitration in China, which anchors the lex arbitri and supports the international enforceability of the award. Second, the tribunal: the Guide explains how the tribunal is composed in an ad hoc context, and designates the CIETAC China-Africa Hearing Centre as the appointing authority able to provide arbitrator appointment, challenge decisions and case-secretary support — the institutional backstop that keeps a party-run arbitration from stalling. Third, procedure: it addresses the interface with Chinese courts, including the filing and judicial-supervision requirements, so that an ad hoc award obtained in the FTZ can be recognised and enforced. It also supplies model arbitration clauses and document templates, lowering the practical threshold for using the mechanism.

Why it matters for foreign parties

For foreign companies contracting with Hunan FTZ enterprises — engineering-machinery manufacturers, new-energy suppliers and traders dealing with Africa through the China-Africa Economic and Trade Deep Cooperation Pilot Zone — the Guide matters for four reasons. First, choice: ad hoc arbitration seated in China is now a credible, cheaper and often faster alternative to institutional arbitration for suitable disputes. Second, certainty: the Guide’s designation of a standing institution for procedural support addresses the traditional worry that ad hoc arbitration lacks a safety net. Third, enforceability: by aligning the award with Chinese law and the international framework, the Guide helps ensure awards survive judicial review in China and recognition abroad, including under the New York Convention. Fourth, local expertise: Hunan’s FTZ has full coverage of FTZ courts and international commercial circuit courts across its three areas, an operating international legal-services district in Changsha, and the CIETAC China-Africa Hearing Centre on site — a working dispute-resolution ecosystem rather than paper rules.

Practical steps

Parties considering ad hoc arbitration in the Hunan FTZ should: (1) confirm both parties qualify — the mechanism under the revised Arbitration Law is for disputes between enterprises within the pilot FTZ; (2) draft the arbitration clause using the Guide’s model language, specifying the seat in China, the applicable rules and the appointing authority; (3) decide whether to use the designated institution’s procedural-support services; (4) record the filing required by the Guide so the arbitral process is on the radar of the supervising court; and (5) for foreign counsel, check the Guide’s model clause against the client’s standard dispute-resolution terms. The Guide is also a regional signal: other FTZs are expected to follow with their own practice guides, so the Hunan document is a useful template for what ad hoc arbitration will look like across China. Counsel should also note the broader ecosystem in Hunan — a province whose foreign-related legal-services district in Changsha is operating and whose FTZ courts cover all three areas — since the availability of local judicial and institutional support materially affects how smoothly an ad hoc arbitration will run in practice.

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临时仲裁落地中部：湖南自贸区《临时仲裁指南》解读

《指南》是什么

2026 年 8 月 26 日，”2026 商事仲裁助力湖南营商环境发展高级别对话会”在长沙举行，湖南省贸促会、湖南省高级人民法院、湖南省商务厅（省自贸办）与中国国际经济贸易仲裁委员会中非庭审中心联合发布《中国（湖南）自由贸易试验区临时仲裁指南》（下称《指南》）。这是中部地区首部自贸试验区临时仲裁实践指引。《指南》系统梳理中外企业在湖南自贸区通过临时仲裁解决争议的法律依据、程序规则与注意事项，为开展符合中国国情、理念先进、接轨国际、规范灵活的临时仲裁实践提供操作指引。

法律基础

临时仲裁——不设常设仲裁机构管理、由当事人约定仲裁庭与程序的仲裁方式——由新修订的《中华人民共和国仲裁法》首次从立法层面确立，该法于 2026 年 3 月 1 日施行，明确自贸试验区内企业之间的涉外纠纷可选择以中国为仲裁地进行临时仲裁。湖南省级层面跟进迅速：2026 年 7 月印发的自贸试验区提升战略实施方案明确”支持湖南自贸试验区内企业选择临时仲裁方式解决纠纷”。《指南》把这一支持操作化，并坐落在清晰的权力链条之上：新修订《仲裁法》、最高人民法院关于为自贸试验区建设提供司法保障的意见，以及省级实施方案。

《指南》覆盖什么

《指南》厘清三个核心要素。其一，仲裁地：当事人约定中国境内的仲裁地，锚定仲裁适用法律并支撑裁决的国际可执行性。其二，仲裁庭：《指南》说明临时仲裁语境下仲裁庭如何组成，并明确贸仲中非庭审中心作为指定机构可提供仲裁员指定、回避决定、案件秘书等程序辅助服务——这是防止当事人自办仲裁陷入停滞的制度兜底。其三，程序：涉及与中国法院的衔接，包括备案与司法监督要求，确保在自贸区取得的临时仲裁裁决可获认可与执行。此外还配套示范条款与全套文书模板，降低实践门槛。

对外方为何重要

对与湖南自贸区企业签约的外国公司——工程机械制造商、新能源供应商以及经中非经贸深度合作先行区对非贸易的主体——《指南》有四重意义。第一，选择：设在中国境内的临时仲裁对合适争议而言，现在是可信、通常更省时省钱的替代选项。第二，确定性：指定常设机构提供程序支持，回应了”临时仲裁无安全网”的传统顾虑。第三，可执行性：通过与国内法与国际框架对齐，《指南》帮助裁决在国内司法审查与域外（含《纽约公约》框架下）认可与执行中存活。第四，本地生态：湖南自贸区三个片区已实现自贸法庭与国际商事巡回审判庭全覆盖，长沙涉外法务区正式运营，贸仲中非庭审中心落地——是运转中的争议解决生态，而非纸面规则。

操作建议

考虑在湖南自贸区采用临时仲裁的当事人应：（1）确认双方适格——新《仲裁法》下的机制适用于自贸试验区内企业之间的纠纷；（2）使用《指南》示范条款起草仲裁条款，明确中国仲裁地、适用规则与指定机构；（3）决定是否使用指定机构的程序支持服务；（4）按《指南》要求完成备案，使仲裁程序进入监督法院视野；（5）外方律师应把示范条款与客户标准争议解决条款比对。《指南》也是区域信号：其他自贸区预计将跟进发布各自的实践指引，湖南文件因而成为观察中国临时仲裁将如何展开的有用模板。律师还应留意湖南更广的生态——长沙涉外法务区已运营、三个片区自贸法庭全覆盖——本地司法与机构支持的可得性，直接影响临时仲裁在实务中运行的顺畅程度。

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