Foreign Corrupt Practices Act

Foreign Corrupt Practices Act

Other short titles	Domestic and Foreign Investment Improved Disclosure Act Securities Exchange Act of 1934 Amendment Unlawful Corporate Payments Act
Long title	An Act to amend the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to make it unlawful for an issuer of securities registered pursuant to section 12 of such Act or an issuer required to file reports pursuant to section 15(d) of such Act to make certain payments to foreign officials and other foreign persons, to require such issuers to maintain accurate records, and for other purposes.
Acronyms (colloquial)	FCPA
Nicknames	Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977
Enacted by	the 95th United States Congress
Effective	December 19, 1977
Citations
Public law	95-213
Statutes at Large	91 Stat. 1494
Codification
Titles amended	15 U.S.C.: Commerce and Trade
U.S.C. sections amended	15 U.S.C. ch. 2B § 78a et seq.
Legislative history
Introduced in the Senate as S. 305 by William Proxmire (D-WI) on January 18, 1977 Committee consideration by Senate Banking, House Commerce Passed the Senate on May 5, 1977 (passed) Passed the House on November 1, 1977 (passed, in lieu of H.R. 3815) Reported by the joint conference committee on December 6, 1977; agreed to by the Senate on December 6, 1977 (agreed) and by the House on December 7, 1977 (349-0) Signed into law by President Jimmy Carter on December 19, 1977

The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 (FCPA) (15 U.S.C. § 78dd-1, et seq.) is a United States federal law that prohibits U.S. citizens and entities from bribing foreign government officials to benefit their business interests.^[1]

The FCPA is applicable worldwide and extends specifically to publicly traded companies and their personnel, including officers, directors, employees, shareholders, and agents. Following amendments made in 1998, the Act also applies to foreign firms and persons who, either directly or through intermediaries, help facilitate or carry out corrupt payments in U.S. territory.^[2]

Pursuant to its anti-bribery purpose, the FCPA amends the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to require all companies with securities listed in the U.S. to meet certain accounting provisions, such as ensuring accurate and transparent financial records and maintaining internal accounting controls.^[3]

The FCPA is jointly enforced by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which apply criminal and civil penalties respectively.^[4]

Since its passage, the FCPA has been subject to controversy and criticism,^[5] namely whether its enforcement discourages U.S. companies from investing abroad.^[6] The Act was subsequently amended in 1988 to raise the standard of proof for a finding of bribery.^[4]