Rules of procedure

I. Sessions

Regular Sessions

Opening date: Rule 1 | Closing date: Rule 2 | Place of meeting: Rule 3 | Place of meeting: Rule 4 | Notification of session: Rule 5 | Temporary adjournment of session: Rule 6

Special Sessions

Summoning by the General Assembly: Rule 7 | Summoning at the request of the Security Council or Members: Rule 8 | Notification of session: Rule 9 | Notification of session: Rule 10

Regular and Special Sessions

Notification to other bodies: Rule 11

 

Regular Sessions

Opening date

Rule 1 PDF

(a) The General Assembly shall meet every year in regular session commencing on the Tuesday of the second week in September, counting from the first week that contains at least one working day. [Rule based directly on a provision of the Charter (Art. 20); see introduction, paras. 51, 53 and 61 PDF]

(b) The general debate in the General Assembly shall open on the Tuesday of the fourth week in September, counting from the first week that contains at least one working day, and shall be held without interruption over a period of nine working days.

Closing date

Rule 2 PDF

On the recommendation of the General Committee, the General Assembly shall, at the beginning of each session, fix a closing date for the session. [See introduction, paras. 11 and 18 PDF]

Place of meeting

Rule 3 PDF

The General Assembly shall meet at the Headquarters of the United Nations unless convened elsewhere in pursuance of a decision taken at a previous session or at the request of a majority of the Members of the United Nations.

Rule 4 PDF

Any Member of the United Nations may, at least one hundred and twenty days before the date fixed for the opening of a regular session, request that the session be held elsewhere than at the Headquarters of the United Nations. The Secretary-General shall immediately communicate the request, together with his recommendations, to the other Members of the United Nations. If within thirty days of the date of this communication a majority of the Members concur in the request, the session shall be held accordingly.

Rule 5 PDF

The Secretary-General shall notify the Members of the United Nations, at least sixty days in advance, of the opening of a regular session.

Temporary adjournment of session

Rule 6 PDF

The General Assembly may decide at any session to adjourn temporarily and resume its meetings at a later date.

 

Special Sessions

Summoning by the General Assembly

Rule 7 PDF

The General Assembly may fix a date for a special session. [Based directly on a provision of the Charter (Art. 20)]

Summoning at the request of the Security Council or Members

Rule 8 PDF

[See introduction, paras. 13 and 27. PDF]

Request by Members

Rule 9 PDF

[See introduction, para. 13 PDF]

Notification of session

Rule 10 PDF

The Secretary-General shall notify the Members of the United Nations, at least fourteen days in advance, of the opening of a special session convened at the request of the Security Council, and at least ten days in advance in the case of a session convened at the request of a majority of the Members or upon the concurrence of a majority in the request of any Member. In the case of an emergency special session convened pursuant to rule 8 (b), the Secretary-General shall notify Members at least twelve hours before the opening of the session. [See introduction, para. 13. PDF]

 

Regular and Special Sessions

Notification to other bodies

Rule 11 PDF

Copies of the notice convening each session of the General Assembly shall be addressed to all other principal organs of the United Nations and to the specialized agencies referred to in Article 57, paragraph 2, of the Charter.

 

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