Buyer Code of Conduct

1. Why this Code exists

SriLankaExport.com (operated by Harker International (Pvt) Ltd, Reg. No. PV 00338032, Kandy, Sri Lanka) is a trade marketplace, not a retail website. Both sides, Vendors and Buyers, carry responsibilities. The Vendor side is covered by the Vendor Code of Conduct. This document sets the equivalent standard for Buyers.

By using the Platform to enquire, request a quote, or place an order, you accept this Code as a condition of access.

2. Honest representation

• Provide accurate information at account registration: legal company name, business registration where you have one, contact details, and the jurisdiction where you are tax-resident.
• Provide accurate information in RFQs and orders: real quantities, real destinations, real end-use. Vendors quote prices and lead times against the information you provide; misrepresentation distorts their planning and is grounds for account action.
• Do not register multiple Buyer accounts in different identities for the purpose of circumventing Vendor screening or accessing volume discounts you would not otherwise qualify for.
• Do not impersonate another organization or person.

3. Payment obligations

• Settle invoices in accordance with the payment terms agreed with the Vendor at order. The Platform’s default is payment in advance via bank wire transfer to HNB Sri Lanka; Letter of Credit terms apply where separately agreed. A licensed local card gateway (HNB IPG) is being added.
• Do not initiate card chargebacks as a primary route for dispute resolution. The Refund Policy and Dispute Resolution Policy describe the agreed processes; chargebacks bypass both. A chargeback opened without first using these processes is grounds for account suspension and may affect future onboarding.
• Where you elect Letter of Credit settlement, ensure the LC is issued, advised, and confirmed within the timeframe agreed at order; failure to issue an LC after order acceptance is treated as Buyer non-performance and may trigger Vendor recovery rights.
• Do not request invoices that misstate the goods, the price, the quantity, or the destination: whether to reduce customs duty, avoid tax, satisfy an internal audit, or for any other purpose.

3a. Import Responsibility & Document Verification

By using SriLankaExport.com, you accept the following Buyer Terms in addition to the operational obligations elsewhere in this Code:

• Import responsibility. You are responsible for confirming destination-country import eligibility, customs clearance, importer-of-record requirements, duties / taxes, labeling, permits, testing, sanctions, and product restrictions before purchase or shipment. SriLankaExport.com is an independent private marketplace and does not act as the seller, importer of record, customs broker, or government authority unless expressly agreed in writing.
• Document verification. Documents displayed or shared through SriLankaExport.com, including Certificates of Origin, phytosanitary certificates, vendor-claimed Organic / ISO / Halal / Fairtrade / Lion Logo / GI certificates, and other compliance documents, are provided by Vendors or third parties. You should verify final documents with the issuing authority, customs broker, importer of record, or destination-country regulator before relying on them. The marketplace review of vendor-submitted documents is an internal control (see Marketplace Verification Policy) and does not replace your own due diligence.
• Buyer acknowledgment at order. You will be asked to confirm an electronic acknowledgment to the above effect on RFQ submission and at checkout. The acknowledgment is captured under the Sri Lanka Electronic Transactions Act and is retained with timestamp, IP address, and clause version (current: ack-v1-2026-05-30) for audit purposes.

For the full buyer-side framework, see Buyer Due Diligence & Import Responsibility.

4. Sanctions and export controls

• Do not place orders for shipment to, or for end-use in, a country, region, or by a person prohibited by your home jurisdiction’s sanctions, the OFAC Specially Designated Nationals list, the EU Consolidated List of Sanctions, the UK OFSI sanctions list, the UN Security Council sanctions list, or any applicable trade-control regime.
• At checkout, confirm that the shipment is not destined for a sanctioned country or prohibited end-use. The full list of restricted and prohibited destinations is set out in our Export Compliance & Trade Sanctions Policy.
• Provide an accurate end-use statement when requested for goods subject to control (dual-use items, controlled chemicals embedded in industrial inputs).
• Do not engage in transshipment, false invoicing, or other techniques designed to circumvent your home jurisdiction’s export controls.

5. Intellectual property and Vendor designs

• Do not request a Vendor to manufacture goods that infringe a third party’s intellectual property: including counterfeits, knock-offs, look-alike packaging, or branded goods without authorization from the rights holder.
• Where you provide a design, specification, or pattern to a Vendor for production (e.g. private-label garment, custom batik motif, OEM handicraft), you represent that you have the legal right to use and license that design and that doing so does not infringe third-party rights. You indemnify the Vendor and Harker International for any third-party claim arising from your design.
• Vendor product photography, descriptions, and brand assets are the Vendor’s intellectual property and are licensed to the Platform for listing purposes; they are not licensed to you for use outside the order. Do not copy Vendor content for use in your own catalog, advertising, or product pages without separate license.

6. Anti-bribery and gifts

You are bound by the same standards described in our Anti-Bribery & Anti-Corruption Policy:

• Do not offer, promise, or give anything of value to a Harker International employee, Vendor employee, or third party in connection with the Platform with the intent of influencing a decision improperly.
• Do not request facilitation payments from a Vendor to expedite customs clearance, certification, or any other governmental action.
• Do not solicit kickbacks, undisclosed referral fees, or secret commissions from a Vendor in connection with an order.

7. Confidentiality of Vendor information

• Vendor pricing tiers, MOQ negotiations, and bespoke quote information disclosed to you in the course of an enquiry are confidential. You may use them to evaluate the offer and conduct your own internal procurement process; you may not share them with third parties (including the Vendor’s competitors) outside that process without the Vendor’s consent.
• Where you receive samples for evaluation, do not reverse-engineer, lab-decompose, or commercially exploit the sample outside the agreed evaluation scope.

8. Quality concerns and dispute resolution

• Inspect goods promptly on receipt and raise any quantity, quality, certification, or specification concerns through the Vendor messaging on the order page first. Most disputes resolve directly within 48–72 hours.
• Where direct resolution does not succeed, open a refund claim under the Refund Policy within the buyer-protection window.
• Escalation to Harker International dispute resolution follows the three-tier process described in the Dispute Resolution Policy: direct → mediation → arbitration.
• Where claims are made with supporting evidence (photographs, lab results, third-party inspection reports), we will work with both sides to find a fair outcome. False or exaggerated claims undermine the Platform’s trust framework and are grounds for account action.

9. Platform respect

• Do not solicit Vendors to transact off-platform until an order has been placed and accepted on-platform. Off-platform circumvention deprives the Platform of its commission and weakens the trust infrastructure (sanctions screening, payment routing, dispute support) that you rely on.
• Do not abuse the Vendor enquiry channel: do not spam Vendors with unrelated solicitations, do not use enquiries to harvest contact details for unrelated marketing, do not use the Platform as a cold-outreach list.
• Where you operate an automated procurement integration in future, declare it; we do not currently support automated agents and unauthorized automation can be blocked.

10. Data and privacy

• Buyer-side personal data submitted to the Platform is processed under the Privacy Policy and the Data Processing Addendum.
• Where you supply consignee details, end-user information, or any third-party personal data through the Platform (e.g. for shipment to a destination address), you represent that you have the right to do so under your applicable data-protection laws and that you have provided any necessary notices to those data subjects.

11. Reporting concerns about a Vendor

If you suspect a Vendor of misrepresentation, certification fraud, sanctions evasion, sourcing violations, or any other breach of our standards, please report it through the Whistleblower & Speak-Up Policy channels. Reports made in good faith are protected from retaliation.

12. Consequences

Material breaches of this Code may result in:

• Suspension of your Buyer account, pending review.
• Termination of your Buyer account.
• Refusal of further transactions with the Vendor(s) involved or across the Platform.
• Where applicable, referral to law-enforcement or supervisory authorities.
• Continued liability for any payments owed to a Vendor at the time of action.