Amendment of the United Nations Charter

Article 108 of the United Nations Charter establishes the ordinary procedure for amending the Charter. It requires a two-stage process consisting of adoption by the General Assembly and subsequent ratification by member states.

Adoption and ratification

• The proposed amendment must first be adopted by a vote of two-thirds of the members of the General Assembly.
• It must then be ratified, according to their respective constitutional processes, by two-thirds of all United Nations members.
• The ratifying states must include all permanent members of the Security Council.

Entry into force and effect

After both requirements are fulfilled, the amendment enters into force for all UN members, including any member that did not ratify it. General Assembly adoption alone is therefore insufficient to alter the Charter.

• The procedure combines broad approval among the UN membership with the consent of every permanent member of the Security Council.
• Each permanent member can prevent an amendment from entering into force by withholding ratification, even though Article 108 does not require a separate Security Council vote.

Distinction from Charter review

Article 108 governs specific Charter amendments. The separate procedure for convening a general conference to review the Charter is contained in Article 109.