The 1928 International Convention put order in the domain of international exhibitions by regulating their frequency and defining rights and responsibilities of organisers and participants. In order to ensure the application of this treaty, the Bureau International des Expositions was created.

Then, two protocols – the first signed in 1948 and the second in 1966 – came to amend the Convention in the critical domain of exhibitions frequency.
In order to consider the jurisprudence issued from BIE's forty years of existence and following the economic new asset (acceleration of progress pace, reduction of traveling time, entry of new countries on the international arena), a deep revision of the 1928 Convention became urgent.

This revision was initiated in 1965 and concluded on November 30th 1972 with the signature of the protocol, which came into force on June 9th 1980.

Finally, two new amendments became necessary in order to update the Convention and mostly to redefine the exhibition categories: they were signed on June 24th 1982 and May 31st 1988.

The 1928 Paris Convention, amended and modified by the different protocols, currently governs the organisation of international exhibitions.

Download the Convention Text