General Conditions of Sales

GENERAL CONDITIONS OF SALES (GCS) FOR SERVICES

Effective Date: May 25, 2026

Provider: International Urban Professionals Forum (IUPF)

Jurisdiction: France & European Union

Article 1: Legal Identity of the Provider and Scope

1.1 Corporate Identity: The services and transactions governed by these General Conditions of Sales (GCS) are provided by the International Urban Professionals Forum (IUPF), a non-profit association established and governed under the French Law of July 1, 1901 (Association Loi 1901).

1.2 Statutory Registrations: The IUPF is officially registered in France under:

RNA Number (Répertoire National des Associations): W751282516

SIRET Number: 10681006200013

1.3 Institutional Contact Details: For any inquiries, support requests, or formal notifications, the Customer may contact IUPF via the following coordinates:

Registered Headquarters Address: IUPF – International Urban Professionals Forum - 22 rue Joubert - 75009 I Paris, France

Official Email Address: forum@iupf.net

1.4 Application: These General Conditions of Sales (hereinafter "GCS") govern all agreements, orders, purchases of services, and financial transactions concluded between the International Urban Professionals Forum (hereinafter "IUPF", "we", "us", or "our") and any professional or consumer client (hereinafter the "Buyer" or "Customer"). By placing an order, registering for an event, purchasing a service, or initiating a financial transaction with IUPF, the Buyer unreservedly accepts these GCS in full.

Article 2: Nature and Non-Transferability of Services

2.1 Professional Nature: IUPF provides professional services, including but not limited to networking platforms, educational resources, event registrations, workshops, and institutional memberships.

2.2 Strict Non-Transferability: All services, registrations, credentials, and access rights provided by IUPF are personal, individual, and strictly untransferable. Access keys, event tickets, or service rights cannot be sold, assigned, bartered, or transferred to any third party without the express, prior written consent of the IUPF Board of Directors.

Article 3: Financial Terms, Payments, and Fees

3.1 Immediate Payment: All invoices issued by IUPF for services or products are due and payable immediately upon receipt, using the specific transaction method agreed upon during the ordering process (e.g., credit card, bank transfer, or dedicated online gateway).

3.2 Banking and Transaction Fees: Payments must be received by IUPF in full. If no specific payment infrastructure or method was explicitly mandated by IUPF, or if the Buyer utilizes an alternative method, any and all transaction fees, international bank routing charges, currency conversion expenses, or intermediary fees shall be borne exclusively by the Customer. IUPF reserves the right to suspend services if the net amount received is lower than the invoiced total due to deducted bank fees.

3.3 Currency of Reference and Volatility: All prices, fees, and transactions are officially established, tracked, and due in Euros (€). If payment calculations are displayed in another currency (e.g., USD) for the Customer’s convenience, the final transaction value will be executed based on the official banking exchange rate at the exact moment the payment is cleared. IUPF bears no responsibility for shortfalls caused by currency fluctuations between the date an invoice is issued and the date payment is processed. The Customer remains responsible for ensuring that the net amount received in IUPF’s Euro account matches the exact Euro total invoiced.

3.4 Taxation and VAT: Prices are indicated net of tax unless stated otherwise. In accordance with European and French tax regulations, VAT (Taxe sur la Valeur Ajoutée) will be applied at the prevailing French statutory rate where applicable (e.g., for European consumers or specific physical events). In normal cases (Franchise en Base de TVA), IUPF invoices don’t apply VAT (“TVA non applicable - Article 293 B du Code Général des Impôts"). Professional entities utilizing the EU reverse-charge mechanism must provide a valid intra-community VAT number at the time of the transaction.

Article 4: Order Cancellations, Right of Withdrawal, and Fees

4.1 Statutory Right of Withdrawal (EU Consumers Only): In accordance with Article L221-18 of the French Consumer Code and EU Directive 2011/83/EU, a Buyer acting as a consumer who purchases services online possesses a legal right of withdrawal of fourteen (14) calendar days from the date of the conclusion of the contract, without giving reasons.

4.2 Statutory Exceptions to Withdrawal: In accordance with Article L221-28 of the French Consumer Code, the right of withdrawal cannot be exercised for:

Services fully executed before the end of the withdrawal period, where execution began with the consumer’s prior express consent and formal acknowledgment that they lose their right of withdrawal.
The provision of event ticketing, accommodation, transport, or leisure services which must be provided on a specific date or period (e.g., conference registrations).

4.3 Standard Cancellation Framework: Outside the statutory consumer withdrawal period, the following cancellation rules apply:

Cancellations made more than one (1) month prior to the scheduled delivery or execution date of the service are eligible for a partial refund, subject to a fixed administrative processing fee representing 15% of the total transaction amount.
Cancellations made one (1) month or less (≤ 30 days) prior to the scheduled delivery, execution, or opening date of the service are strictly non-refundable. No reimbursements, credits, or roll-overs will be granted.

4.4 Charges for Prepared or Custom Services: Any services that have already been fully delivered, or customized services currently prepared for delivery at the time of the cancellation request, shall be charged to the Buyer in full and are completely excluded from any form of reimbursement.

Article 5: Force Majeure and Event Modifications

5.1 Definition: A Force Majeure event includes any exceptional, unpredictable, and irresistible circumstance beyond IUPF’s control, including but not limited to acts of God, war, hostilities, government-imposed travel restrictions, health emergencies, strikes, or failures of public telecommunication networks.

5.2 Limitation of Liability: In the event that a scheduled in-person service or international event (such as an international, in-person Conference) must be postponed, modified, or transitioned to a digital format due to a Force Majeure event, IUPF shall not be held liable for any damages, third-party cancellation costs (such as airline tickets or hotel bookings incurred by the Buyer), or logistical losses. Registrations will automatically roll over to the rescheduled or digital event, and no immediate right to a refund shall arise.

5.3 Travel Documents and Visa Denials: The acquisition of valid travel documents, passports, entry visas, and medical clearances is the sole responsibility of the Customer. A visa denial, border restriction, or personal inability to travel does not constitute a case of Force Majeure and will be treated strictly under the standard cancellation deadlines outlined in Article 4.3.

Article 6: Intellectual Property (IP) Protection

6.1 Ownership: All contents, methodologies, slides, data, graphics, logos, webinar recordings, structural frameworks, and educational or professional materials provided during the delivery of IUPF services remain the exclusive intellectual property of IUPF and its protected authors.

6.2 Restricted Use: The purchase of a service or event ticket grants the Buyer a strictly personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable right to view, learn from, and use the material for individual professional development. Any unauthorized reproduction, recording, public broadcast, translation, or redistribution of IUPF materials without formal, prior written permission from the Board constitutes intellectual property infringement (contrefaçon) under French and European law. If the buyer is an author of a contribution to the event (a session, paper, presentation, performance, etc), they keep the copyright of that contribution only, unless stated otherwise in the case of an individual agreement.

Article 7: Ethical Vetting of Payments, Donations, and Transactions

7.1 Compliance with Mission and Ethics: As an international organization operating under strict compliance guidelines, IUPF reserves the absolute, unilateral right to reject, cancel, or return any payments, service orders, corporate sponsorships, or financial donations from any Customer, Buyer, or entity whose core commercial operations, public stances, or corporate governance are deemed incompatible with IUPF’s statutory mission, institutional ethics, or professional principles.

7.2 Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Source of Funds: IUPF strictly adheres to European Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Counter-Terrorist Financing (CTF) directives. IUPF reserves the right to block any transaction and request formal proof of origin regarding the financial sources utilized. IUPF will systematically refuse and report any payments or funds where the provenance cannot be clearly verified, or where financial assets appear linked to unverified, un-audited, speculative, or illicit commercial operations. In the event of a transaction rejection under this Article, IUPF shall incur no liability for breach of contract or delay of service.

Article 8: Severability Clause (Clause de Divisibilité)

If any provision, paragraph, or individual term of these General Conditions of Sales is found, declared, or ruled to be invalid, illegal, unenforceable, or legally disputed under current local, national, or European legislation or by a court of competent jurisdiction, such invalidity shall not affect the remaining terms. The remaining provisions of these GCS shall remain in full force and effect, and shall be construed as if the invalid or unenforceable component had never been included.

Article 9: Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

9.1 Governing Law: These GCS, along with all sales, services, and corporate transactions related to them, are governed exclusively by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Republic of France.

9.2 Jurisdiction: In the event of any legal dispute, controversy, or claim arising out of or relating to the validity, interpretation, performance, or breach of these Conditions, the parties commit to first seeking an amicable resolution. Should amicable mediation fail, exclusive jurisdiction is hereby granted to the competent courts of Paris, France (Tribunaux de Paris), regardless of the Buyer's country of domicile, place of execution, or the method of payment utilized.