Legal entities may be held criminally liable for committing corrupt or corruption-related offenses.
Legal entities may be held criminally liable for committing corrupt or corruption-related offenses.
The provisions of the legislation apply to both domestic and foreign legal entities, regardless of whether the purpose of such organizations is to make a profit.
A legal entity is liable if the offense was committed by:
and, at the same time:
According to Law No. 1390, legal entities may be held liable for crimes such as:
In addition, the Law provides for the possibility of holding organizations liable for other corruption or corruption-related crimes if the conditions for organizational liability are met (see subsection 1.3).
Sanctions for legal entities include:
Organizations may claim mitigation of liability in the following cases:
The Criminal Code provides for the following crimes:
Law No. 004 "On Combating Corruption, Illegal Enrichment, and Investigation of Crimes" also provides for the following crime:
Active bribery is punishable by imprisonment for a term of 4 to 8 years and a fine of 100 to 250 days (in Bolivia, the fine involves payment to the Compensation Fund of a sum determined by the judge in penalty days, based on the financial situation of the convicted person, his daily income, ability to work, and family responsibilities at the time of sentencing); in the case of bribery of a national or foreign public official or employee, as well as an official of a public international organization, the punishment is imprisonment for a term of 7 to 12 years, a fine of 251 to 400 days, and disqualification.
Receiving proceeds from corruption offenses is punishable by imprisonment for a term of 3 to 8 years with confiscation of illegally obtained funds.
Legalization of illegal proceeds is punishable by imprisonment for a term of 5 to 10 years, deprivation of the right to hold public and/or elected office, and a fine of 200 to 500 days.
Transnational active bribery is punishable by imprisonment for a term of 5 to 10 years and a fine of 100 to 500 days.
Public officials are prohibited from participating in procedures or processes in which they have a direct interest and from obtaining benefits or advantages in procedures or processes under their control for themselves or for third parties.
Members of municipal councils are prohibited from:
Public officials are prohibited from accepting gifts, souvenirs, benefits, or any other type of gratuity from any individual or collective, public or private, national or foreign person intended to directly or indirectly facilitate the performance of their duties or influence other public servants for similar purposes.
At the same time, the Criminal Code recognizes as a crime the receipt by a public officials, directly or indirectly, for themselves or for third parties, of gifts or other benefits, as well as accepting offers or promises of such gifts or other benefits, with the aim of committing or refraining from committing acts related to their official duties or contrary to their official duties.
Public officials are prohibited from engaging in business or entering into private contracts closely related to the performance of their duties in public service.
Public officials are also prohibited from being directors, managers, consultants, sponsors, representatives, or providing services, whether paid or unpaid, to individuals or groups of individuals who carry out any operations, obtain licenses, permits, concessions, privileges, or attempt to enter into contracts of any kind with public authorities.
Members of municipal councils are prohibited from:
There are no restrictions concerning the revolving door.
The Clean Company Act provides for the administrative and civil liability of legal entities for committing acts against public administration, whether national or foreign.
The Administrative Improbity Law applies to anyone who, even not being a public agent, intentionally aids and abets the commission of an act of improbity.
The Clean Company Act and the Clean Company Act Amendments Decree apply if the offense:
Legal entities will be objectively liable for the harmful acts provided for in the Clean Company Act committed in their interest or to their benefit.
The Clean Company Act
The organization shall be held liable for acts harmful to public administration, whether national or foreign, including but not limited to the following:
Administrative corruption offenses imply the mandatory existence of an official as a party to the offense, thus, bribery in the commercial sector does not constitute an offense.
The Administrative Improbity Law
The legal entity is held liable for intentionally aiding and abetting a public official in committing an act (omission) that:
The Clean Company Act:
The Administrative Improbity Law:
The Administrative Improbity Law provides for a non-prosecution agreement if the accused person fully reimburses the damage and disgorges the improperly obtained benefit.
The Clean Company Act does not provide for an exemption from liability.
The amount of the fine may be increased if the following factors are present:
The amount of the fine may be reduced if the following factors are present:
The leniency agreement will be executed with the legal entity provided that it effectively cooperates with the investigators and such cooperation results in the following:
The legal entity that intends to enter into a leniency agreement should:
Entering into a leniency agreement allows a company to apply for the following:
The obligation to adopt measures to prevent wrongdoing (integrity programs) is provided for organizations involved in certain types of interactions with the government.
For other organizations, the system of measures to prevent wrongdoing can be:
At the federal level, an organization that wins a public tender worth more than R$200 million.
At provincial and municipal levels, additional requirements may be imposed.
The integrity program is evaluated by the following parameters:
At the same time, each organization's specific characteristics should be considered while assessing its integrity program's adequacy.
At the federal level: there are no specific sanctions, but it is provided that procedures for confirming that measures have been taken and penalties for non-compliance are included in the public contract.
At the provincial and municipal levels: penalties for failure to adopt integrity programs may be settled as a percentage of the value of the relevant public contract or other agreement with the government.
The Penal Code:
The Administrative Improbity Law - liability for intentionally aiding and abetting a public official in committing an act (omission) that:
! Partners, shareholders, directors, and employees of a legal entity are not liable for an offense that may be imputed to the legal entity unless there is evidence of their participation and direct benefit - if so, they shall be held liable to the extent of their involvement.
The Penal Code:
The Administrative Improbity Law (with respect to individuals who are not public officials):
The norms of the Penal Code apply to any crime committed in Brazilian territory and to certain crimes committed outside Brazil, including crimes detrimental to the public administration.
Those holding an office or employment in the federal executive branch must prevent or avoid possible conflicts of interests. The law lists typical situations that constitute a conflict of interests in the exercise of office or employment and after exercising the office or employment.
CoI situations in the exercise of office or employment:
CoI situations after the termination of office or employment:
(a) Perform, directly or indirectly, any service to a person or entity with whom the officer has an appropriate relationship in connection with the performance of his/her official or employment duties;
(b) To hold a position of manager or consultant or to enter into a professional relationship with natural or legal persons carrying out activities related to the scope of responsibility of the position previously held;
(c) Entering into service, consulting, evaluation, or similar contracts with agencies or organizations of the federal executive branch related, including indirectly, to the agency or organization in which the official held a position or employment;
(d) Participation, directly or indirectly, in the pursuit of private interests before the body or organization with which the official held office or performed work or with which the official established a relevant relationship in connection with the performance of official duties or work.
Public officials are prohibited from accepting gifts, except for gifts from foreign authorities received in the course of protocol events and assuming reciprocity.
In addition, it is allowed to accept gifts that:
Receiving a gift from any person interested in a decision taken by a public official or a collegial body in which the official participates shall be considered a CoI.
The following standards are set for officials of the High Federal Administration:
There is also an obligation for officials to:
Officials of High Federal Administration:
According to the Conflict of Interest Act, public officials, after terminating their office or employment, are also prohibited from:
However, for certain crimes that may be related to corruption (e.g., violation of competition rules), criminal liability is provided for legal entities.
General obligations are established for all organizations, both public and non-public. Specific, more narrowly focused obligations are only provided for public companies, credit institutions, and certain public organizations.
The law establishes the following obligations for organizations:
Enterprises, associations of enterprises, and industry associations are also required to:
In addition, certain categories of private sector organizations (namely, public companies, credit institutions, public organizations established by decision of the Prime Minister, the Minister of Internal Affairs, or the heads of provincial people's committees, as well as public organizations whose statutes permit the collection of public donations) are also subject to the obligations imposed on state organizations concerning:
With regard to public companies, credit institutions, and public organizations established in accordance with the above conditions, in the event of failure to comply with the established obligations:
If the company/organization fails to take measures against persons holding management positions, its name, address, and information about the violations shall be published by the supervisory authority.
No measures of responsibility are provided for other organizations for violation of established obligations.
According to the Criminal Code, bribery occurs when any person, directly or through an intermediary, provides or offers to provide an official, or another person, or organization any of the following benefits in order that the official commits or refrains from committing an act in the interest or at the request of the person giving the bribe:
Liability is also provided for acting as an intermediary in bribery.
For bribery without aggravating circumstances, where the amount of the bribe is less than 100 million dong, the penalty is a fine of between 20 million and 200 million dong, corrective labor without deprivation of liberty for up to 3 years, or imprisonment for a term of between 6 months and 3 years. In the presence of aggravating circumstances (commission of the crime by an organized group of persons, fraud, use of state property to give a bribe, abuse of position and authority, the amount of the bribe between 100 million and 500 million dongs, recidivism), penalties in the form of imprisonment for a term of 2 to 7 years are provided. If the amount of the bribe is between 500 million and 1 billion dong, the punishment is imprisonment for a term of 7 to 12 years, and for amounts exceeding 1 billion dong, imprisonment for a term of 12 to 20 years and a fine of between 10 million and 50 million dong.
A person acting as an intermediary in bribery, in the absence of aggravating circumstances, is subject to a fine of between 20 million and 200 million dong, corrective labor without deprivation of liberty for up to 3 years, or imprisonment for a term of 6 months to 3 years. In the presence of aggravating circumstances, the punishment is imprisonment for a term of 2 to 7 years. If the amount of the bribe is between 500 million and 1 billion dong, the punishment is imprisonment for a term of 5 to 10 years, and for amounts exceeding 1 billion dong, imprisonment for a term of 8 to 15 years and a fine of between 20 million and 200 million dong.
The provisions of the Criminal Code apply to all criminal acts committed on the territory of Vietnam.
According to Law No. 36/2018/QH14, a conflict of interest is a situation in which the interests of an official and his or her relatives influence or may influence the performance of his or her official duties.
Law No. 36/2018/QH14 and Decree No. 59/2019/NĐ-CP list situations in which the actions of an official may constitute a conflict of interest. In particular, a person holding a position or exercising authority is considered to be in a conflict of interest if there are clear indications that he or she is or will be in one of the following situations:
In addition, officials of state-owned enterprises – members of the board of directors, members of the board of participants, the chairman of the board of directors, the general director, the deputy general director, the director, the deputy director, the chief accountant, and persons holding other management positions – are not permitted to:
Bodies, organizations, departments, and officials are prohibited from accepting gifts, directly or indirectly, from bodies, organizations, departments, and individuals related to the activities of the recipient or matters within its sphere of management, when such gifts are presented in connection with the performance of official duties or when the purpose of them is unclear.
According to the law, conflict of interest of public officials exists, inter alia, in case of:
Officials of state-owned enterprises – members of the board of directors, members of the board of participants, the chairman of the board of directors, the general director, the deputy general director, the director, the deputy director, the chief accountant, and persons holding other management positions – are prohibited, among other things, from:
For former public officials, there is a prohibition on establishing, taking a position, holding a managerial post, or managing a private enterprise, limited liability company, joint-stock company, partnership, or cooperative for which they previously bore managerial responsibility, for a specified period in accordance with government regulations. Government Decree No. 59/2019/NĐ-CP sets out the specific parameters for implementing this restriction, including the time limits applicable to different categories of officials in particular sectors.
At the same time, Law No. 22/2008/QH12 provides that officials and civil servants who worked in sectors and positions involving state secrets are prohibited, for at least 5 years from the date of retirement or termination of employment, from engaging in activities related to their former sectors and positions with domestic organizations or individuals, foreign organizations or individuals, as well as in joint ventures with foreign states.
According to the position of the Court of Cassation (translation of the verdict into English), in general, legal persons are not criminally liable for crimes committed by their representatives; accordingly, natural persons who have committed a crime are personally liable.
However, corporate liability has been established for certain crimes, including those indirectly related to corruption offenses. In particular, the Anti-Money Laundering Act provides that the legal entity shall be jointly liable for the payment of any financial sanctions and damages if the crime was committed by a person who works therein in the name and on behalf of the entity.
The Criminal Code does not provide for a separate corpus delicti for such an offense as active bribery, but it is defined that the bribe-giver shall be punished with the penalty prescribed for the bribe-taker.
The crime of passive bribery, in turn, involves the liability of officials for demanding, for himself/herself or for a third party, or accepting, or taking a promise or a donation to perform or refrain from performing an act within his official duties, or an act which he falsely believes is within his/her official duties, or for refusing to perform such an act, or for breach of official duties, as well as for using genuine or alleged influence, or to obtain or try to obtain from any public authority, works, orders, rulings, decisions, medals, a concession, a license, an agreement for supply or a contracting agreement, a position, a service, or any privilege or benefit of any kind, even if the bribe taker did not intend to do so.
A "promise or donation" is defined as any benefit, whatever its name or kind, and whether this benefit is physical or non-physical.
"Officials" include:
Under the Criminal Code, the bribe-giver and/or the intermediary are subject to the same punishment as the bribe-taker.
In the case of an offense committed by a public official by prior agreement, the sanctions for the bribe-taker include life imprisonment and a fine not less than 1,000 Egyptian pounds (depending on the offense); in the case of no prior agreement and in the case of influence peddling, the punishment includes imprisonment and a fine of 200 to 500 Egyptian pounds.
For a foreign official or an official of a public international organization, life imprisonment and a fine of 1,000 Egyptian pounds up to double the amount of the bribe given or promised is prescribed, and if the bribe was not accepted – imprisonment and a fine of 500 to 1,000 Egyptian pounds.
If the bribe recipient was a member of the board of directors of a joint stock company, cooperative or a union established according to the rules prescribed legally, or of any establishment or association that is legally considered a public utility, or any manager or employee of such an organization, possible sanctions include imprisonment for up to 7 years and a fine of 500 Egyptian pounds up to the amount of the bribe paid or promised.
Bribing an employee of a private sector organization is punishable by up to 2 years imprisonment and a fine of 200 to 500 Egyptian pounds.
In addition to the basic penalties, confiscation of the bribe is provided for in all cases.
It should also be noted that article 107bis of the Criminal Code provides full exemption from the penalty for any bribe-giver who notifies the crime to the authorities or admits it.
According to Article 1, the Egyptian Criminal Code applies to any person who commits an offense prescribed therein within the territory of the country; according to Article 2, it also applies to any person who commits a deed outside the country that renders him/her a doer or accomplice in an offense committed wholly or partly in Egypt.
Persons holding senior positions - the president, prime minister and ministers, governors, general secretaries of governorates, heads of local units, heads of public bodies, institutions, departments and agencies - as well as their deputies and assistants shall:
Persons holding senior positions, their deputies and assistants are prohibited from receiving or accepting gifts or any other form of courtesy from any party, public or private, except in the following cases:
Participation in governing bodies of organizations
For persons holding senior positions, their deputies and assistants, combining their position with membership or work on the boards of directors of companies or private commercial projects is considered an absolute CoI. That person is obliged to resign from that membership or work immediately after his appointment to the public position or job. If it is necessary to take certain procedures to accept the resignation, during the period necessary for this, the official must refrain from attending the council or participating in the activities of the project or company or in making its decisions, and from accepting any financial return from it.
Outside employment
Persons holding senior positions, their deputies and assistants are prohibited from providing advisory services, whether paid or unpaid.
In addition, according to the Law on Public Service, civil servants are prohibited, during official working hours, from performing work incompatible with impartiality and official duties, and, during their leave, from performing work for third parties on a paid or gratuitous basis without the authorisation of the competent authority.
Securities ownership
Persons holding senior positions, their deputies and assistants shall, not later than 2 months after their appointment, take the necessary measures to separate ownership in shares or stakes in companies or commercial projects from the management of any shares or stakes in these companies or projects or any other forms of participation in their profits or dispose of those shares or stakes. Ownership of real estate is not considered a commercial activity to which these rules are applied, even if it is rented or cultivated unless dealing in it normally takes the form of trade.
During the entire period in office, the person concerned may also not directly or indirectly acquire shares or stakes in companies or commercial projects, or increase his/her stake therein, except in the following cases:
Transactions with the private sector
Persons holding senior positions, their deputies and assistants are permitted to transact with the private sector at a fair price, without including in their assessment the status of the public official, whether a seller, buyer, or in any other capacity, and without obtaining any special or additional benefits, whether in relation to the price, the repayment period, the return rate, or other conditions. If the dealing is in goods or services that do not have a prevailing market price, the government official must ask the Corruption Prevention Committee to appoint an independent financial expert to determine the fair price.
Obtaining loans
Senior officials, their deputies and assistants are allowed to borrow money, obtain credit, or purchase an asset in installments following the rates and conditions of return prevailing in the market without obtaining any additional benefits, and on the condition of notifying the Corruption Prevention Committee.
If the entity granting the credit is controlled or affiliated with the official, his dealings with it constitute an absolute CoI and are prohibited even if fair price terms are met.
After leaving office for any reason, persons holding senior positions, their deputies and assistants are prohibited for a period of six months without the approval of the Corruption Prevention Committee:
They are also prohibited from investing in areas that were directly affiliated with them or providing consultations to companies that were affiliated with or subject to the control of the entity they headed, as well as from carrying out any action that could be considered exploitation of the information that was made available by his previous position.
The Prevention of Corruption Act provides an offense relating to bribing a public servant by a commercial organization.
"Commercial organization", subject to the Act, means, inter alia, any body, partnership, or association incorporated outside India and which carries on a business, or part of a business, in any part of India.
In this case, "business" includes a trade or profession or providing service.
A commercial organization can be held liable for the misconduct of any person associated with such a commercial organization.
A person is said to be associated with the commercial organization if such a person performs services for or on behalf of the commercial organization, irrespective of giving or promising to give any undue advantage, which constitutes an offense.
A commercial organization shall be punishable with a fine if any person associated with it gives or promises to give any undue advantage to a public servant intending –
Penalty, the maximum amount of which is not set.
When deciding on the fine amount, the court shall consider the profits or the value of the property, if any, which the accused person has obtained by committing the offense.
It shall be a defense for the commercial organization to prove that it had adequate procedures in compliance with such guidelines as may be prescribed to prevent persons associated with it from undertaking such conduct.
However, the guidelines containing the relevant requirements have not yet been adopted.
Certain organizations are obligated to adopt specific measures to prevent corruption.
For other organizations, according to the Prevention of Corruption Act, having adequate procedures to prevent the misconduct of related persons is a legal defense against liability for bribery of public officials.
Specific measures to prevent corruption should be taken by a company with any securities listed on any recognized stock exchange.
Every listed company or such class or classes of companies, as may be prescribed, shall establish a vigil mechanism for directors and employees to report alleged misconduct.
In case of violation of the provisions of the relevant section of the Companies Act, the company shall be punishable with a fine which shall not be less than 100 000 rupees but may extend to 500 000 rupees.
1. Bribery.
An offense relating to bribing of a public servant - giving or promising to give an undue advantage to another person or persons, with intention -
It shall be immaterial whether the person to whom an undue advantage is given or promised to be given is the same as the person who is to perform or has performed the public duty concerned, and it shall also be immaterial whether such undue advantage is given or promised to be given by the person directly or through a third party.
2. Failure to prevent bribery.
Where an offense relating to bribing a public servant is committed by a commercial organization and such offense is proved in the court to have been committed with the consent or connivance of any director, manager, secretary, or other officer of the commercial organization, such director, manager, secretary or other officer shall also be guilty of the offense.
3. Abetting.
Whoever abets any offense punishable under the Act, whether or not that offense is committed in consequence of that abetment, shall be punishable shall be guilty of the offense.
The Prevention of Corruption Act does not specify how its provisions apply to foreign nationals. However, according to the provisions of the Act, it extends to the whole of India
A public servant should:
No public servant shall, in the discharge of his/her official duties, deal with any matter or give or sanction any contract to any company or firm or any other person if any member of his/her family is employed in that company or firm or under that person or if he or any member of his/her family is interested in such matter or contract in any other manner and the public servant shall refer every such matter or contract to his/her official superior and the matter or contract shall thereafter be disposed of according to the instructions of the authority to whom the reference is made.
No public servant shall:
A casual meal, lift, or other social hospitality shall not be deemed a gift. A public servant shall avoid accepting lavish hospitality or frequent hospitality from any individual, industrial or commercial firms, organizations, etc., having official dealings with him.
A Minister should not accept valuable gifts except from close relatives, and he/she or his/her family members should not accept any gifts from any person with whom he/she may have official dealings.
A Minister may receive gifts when he/she goes abroad or from foreign dignitaries in India which are of symbolic nature (like a sword honour, ceremonial robes, etc.) and if their value is less than 5,000 rupee.
No public servant shall, except with the previous sanction of the Government, -
A public servant may, without the previous sanction of the Government:
provided that:
No public servant shall:
(a) lend, borrow, or deposit money as a principal or agent to, from, or with any person, firm, or private limited company within the limits of his/her authority or with whom he/she is likely to have official dealings as well as otherwise place himself/herself under pecuniary obligation to such a person or firm;
(b) lend money to any person at interest or in a manner whereby return, whether monetary or in-kind, is expected.
Exception: a public servant may give to or accept from a relative or a personal friend a temporary loan in a small amount free of interest or operate a credit account with a bona fide tradesman or make an advance of pay to his/her private employee.
For Ministers the following standards are set:
Although the current Criminal Code does not contain specific provisions on the liability of legal entities, with the adoption of Supreme Court Resolution No.13 of 2016, law enforcement officials received a clear signal that organizations can be held criminally liable.
The new Criminal Code, which will come into force in 2026, contains direct reference to corporations as subjects of criminal law.
At the same time, according to the Law No.11 of 1980 any person who commits a crime of bribery is subject to punishment. The Law No.31 of 1999 and the Law No.20 of 2001 also provide for the possibility of holding organizations liable.
According to both versions of the Criminal Code (current and forthcoming), its provisions apply to any person who commits a crime on the territory of Indonesia.
In addition, according to the Law No.31 of 1999 , any person outside the territory of Indonesia may also be held liable for a corruption crime if it is proven that they provided assistance, facilities, means, or information for the commission of such a crime.
According to the Law No.31 of 1999 and Supreme Court Regulation No.13, a corruption offense is considered to have been committed by an organization if such an offense is committed by persons who are in an employment or other relationship with the organization, acting alone or as a group, on behalf of or in the interests of the organization, whether within or outside the organization.
At the same time, Supreme Court Resolution No. 13 establishes that a company will be held criminally liable if:
The current version of the Criminal Code, as already noted, does not contain any clarifications regarding corporate crimes. At the same time, the forthcoming Criminal Code provides that an offense shall be deemed committed by an organization when it is committed (1) by a leader holding a functional position within the organization’s structure; or (2) by a person who, pursuant to an employment or other relationship, acts on behalf of or in the interests of the organization; or (3) by a party vested with the authority to issue orders, a person exercising supervisory functions in the organization, or a beneficial owner outside the organization’s structure who is nevertheless able to control it, provided that any of the following conditions is met:
In accordance with the Law No.11 of 1980, any person is punishable who gives or promises something to someone with the intention of inducing that person to commit an act (omission) in the performance of his/her duties that is contrary to his/her powers or duties related to the public interest.
The Law No.31 of 1999 sets out the following offenses:
According to the current version of Criminal Code and Law No.20 of 2001, liability attaches to:
The forthcoming Criminal Code encompasses all of the corruption offenses listed above.
The Law No.31 of 1999 and the Law No.20 of 2001 provide for fines of up to IDR 1 billion for corruption offenses; for legal entities, the maximum fine may be increased by a further one third.
Additional penalties include:
The forthcoming Criminal Code sets a minimum fine for companies of IDR 200 million; the maximum fine depends on the specific offense. In particular, for offenses punishable for natural persons by life imprisonment or by up to 20 years’ imprisonment, legal entities may be fined up to IDR 50 billion.
Apart from fines, a company may also be subject to the following sanctions:
A company may also be placed under special state supervision.
According to the current version of Criminal Code, a person who commits an act in compliance with the law or in compliance with an official order issued by a competent authority is not subject to punishment.
Under the new Criminal Code, a person may be exempt from liability if the prohibited act was committed:
In accordance with the Law No.11 of 1980, any person is punishable who gives or promises something to someone with the intention of inducing that person to commit an act (omission) in the performance of his/her duties that is contrary to his/her powers or duties related to the public interest.
The Law No.31 of 1999 sets out the following offenses:
According to the current version of Criminal Code and Law No.20 of 2001, liability attaches to:
The forthcoming Criminal Code encompasses all of the corruption offenses listed above.
Current legislation establishes penalties for individuals who commit corruption offenses, such as imprisonment for up to 15 years and fines of up to IDR 750 million.
The forthcoming Criminal Code will toughen penalties for individuals for corruption offenses by increasing the maximum term of imprisonment to life imprisonment and the maximum fine to IDR 2 billion.
According to both versions of the Criminal Code (current and forthcoming), its provisions apply to any person who commits a crime on the territory of Indonesia.
In addition, according to the Law No.31 of 1999 , any person outside the territory of Indonesia may also be held liable for a corruption crime if it is proven that they provided assistance, facilities, means, or information for the commission of such a crime.
Public officials who may potentially have a conflict of interest are prohibited from making and/or implementing decisions and/or actions.
A conflict of interest is a situation in which a public official has a personal interest in obtaining benefits for himself/herself and/or others through the use of his/her authority, which may affect the neutrality and quality of the decisions and/or actions taken and/or performed. In particular, a conflict of interest arises if, when taking and/or performing decisions and/or actions, the official has:
In the event of a conflict of interest:
According to the Law No.31 of 1999, it is a crime for an official to receive gifts or promises if it is known or there is reason to suspect that the gift or promise was given with the intention of inducing him/her to perform actions (omission) within the scope of his/her official duties that are contrary to his/her duties, or that the gift was given as a result of or in connection with the performance by him/her of actions (omissions) within the scope of his/her official duties that are contrary to his/her duties.
Receiving gratification will not constitute a crime if the recipient reports it to the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) within 30 days; after that, the KPK decides whether the recipient may keep it or must transfer it to state ownership.
According to the Gratification Handbook published by the KPK, "reward" is interpreted very broadly and may mean money, goods, discounts, commissions, interest-free loans, travel tickets, accommodation, tourist trips, free medical care, and other benefits received within the country or abroad, including through electronic means or without them.
The Handbook also provides examples of what may be considered gratification:
Permissible gifts that do not need to be reported to the KPK include:
Public officials are prohibited from:
The prohibition does not apply to:
There are no restrictions concerning the revolving door.
The Criminal Code provides for the liability of legal persons while not specifying corporate offenses.
There are no particular provisions on the liability of foreign legal persons.
A legal person becomes subject to criminal liability if its legitimate representative commits an offense on behalf of or in the interests of the legal person.
No separate criminal offenses are provided for legal persons.
The following sanctions are provided for legal persons:
Liquidation of the legal person and confiscation of its assets apply if the legal person has been established solely to commit the offense or, having diverged from the original legitimate purpose, has carried out its activities exclusively to commit the offense.
There is no statutory procedure for holding legal persons liable.
Bribery is the intentional and deliberate giving of money or property, the payment of a bill or of property transferred, directly or indirectly, to induce a public official to do or refrain from doing something that constitutes his/her official duties (Article 95 of the Book Five of the Islamic Penal Code).
Bribery is also a situation where a bribe is not in the form of money but in the form of goods or property transferred, directly or indirectly, to an official for no charge or substantially cheaper than the regular price or prima facie at the regular price but actually substantially cheaper, or where goods or property are purchased from an official, directly or indirectly, at a substantially higher price (Article 93 of the Fifth Book of the Islamic Penal Code).
Mediation of bribery, i.e., knowingly and intentionally facilitating the commission of bribery, including by negotiation, persuasion, transfer of money or property, or a payment bill, is also a criminal offense (Article 96 of the Fifth Book of the CC).
Bribery - confiscation of money or property received as a bribe and imprisonment for 6 months to 3 years or up to 74 lashes.
Mediation of bribery - same penalties as for bribery.
If the bribe-giver has been driven to despair or has no other option or has reported the bribery or made a complaint, he/she shall be exempt from the punishment of imprisonment, and the money received as a bribe must be returned to him/her.
The Islamic Penal Code stipulates that its provisions apply to all persons who commit a crime or part thereof on the territory of Iran.
Current legislation does not provide for separate regulations on conflict of interests.
However, in 2019, a draft law on the Management of Conflict of Interests in the Performance of Legal Duties and Provision of Public Services was developed and submitted to the Parliament for review. The relevant draft law provides for the following CoI restrictions and obligations:
According to the Law on Public Service Regulation, officials of executive authorities are prohibited from receiving any privileges, benefits, gifts, etc., in connection with the performance of administrative functions and official duties from any natural or legal person other than the body in which they hold office.
According to the Law on Administrative Offenses, it is an administrative offense for an official to receive additional benefits other than those explicitly stated in laws and regulations.
According to the Executive Order on Preventing and Combating Corruption, the following also constitute violations:
The draft law on the Management of Conflict of Interests in the Performance of Legal Duties and Provision of Public Services envisages additional restrictions for public officials.
According to the Law on Administrative Offenses, it constitutes an administrative offense for an official to perform outside paid work other than teaching and research.
In addition, all public servants are prohibited from holding more than one organizational position. Where necessary, with the consent of a superior officer, it is permitted to temporarily fill a supervisory or executive organizational position without salary and benefits for a period not exceeding 4 months.
The draft law on the Management of Conflict of Interests in the Performance of Legal Duties and Provision of Public Services envisages additional restrictions for public officials.
Legal persons are subject to administrative liability for unlawful pecuniary remuneration (Article 678 of the Code of Administrative Offenses).
The Code of Administrative Offenses applies to administrative offenses committed (commenced, continued, or completed) on the territory of Kazakhstan.
The legal person may be held liable if the offense was committed, authorized, or approved by the body, a person exercising the managerial functions of the legal person, or an employee of the legal person who performs organizational, managerial, or administrative functions.
It shall be an administrative offense for a legal person to provide unlawful pecuniary remuneration, gifts, benefits, or services to persons authorized to perform public functions or to persons equal to them unless these actions constitute a crime.
Sanctions applicable to legal persons for committing administrative offenses may include:
Mitigating factors for the commission of an administrative offense include, inter alia:
Aggravating factors include, among others:
The obligation of organizations to adopt measures for preventing corruption, including minimizing the causes and conditions contributing to corruption offenses, is established by the Law on Combating Corruption.
The obligation to take measures for preventing corruption is stipulated for "subjects of entrepreneurship". According to the Entrepreneurship Code, subjects of entrepreneurship are, inter alia, non-state commercial legal entities carrying out entrepreneurial activities (private entrepreneurship entities) and state enterprises (state entrepreneurship entities).
Measures for preventing corruption include:
For subjects of the quasi-governmental sector, an additional obligation is set to establish units performing functions of anti-corruption compliance. For other entities, the establishment of such units is optional.
Standards for the prevention of corruption for business entities may also be developed and adopted by networks (associations, unions) of business entities.
Giving a bribe to a person authorized to perform state functions or to an equivalent person, or a person holding a responsible public post, or to an official, or a foreign official, or an official of an international organization, directly or through an intermediary (Article 367 of the Criminal Code).
Mediation in bribery - assisting a bribe-taker and a bribe-giver in reaching or carrying out an agreement between them to accept and give a bribe (Article 368 of the Criminal Code).
Commercial bribery - unlawfully giving money, securities, or other property to a person performing managerial functions in a commercial or other organization as well as unlawfully providing services of material value for using his/her official position as well as for general patronage or connivance in the interests of the bribe-giver (Article 253 CC).
Giving unlawful pecuniary remuneration, gifts, benefits, or services by individuals to persons authorized to perform public functions or equivalent persons if such actions do not constitute a criminal offense (Article 676 of the CAO).
Giving of a bribe - a fine of up to 60 times the amount of the bribe, imprisonment for up to 12 years, including confiscation of property, and lifetime disqualification to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities.
Mediation in bribery - a fine of up to 30 times the amount of the bribe, imprisonment for up to 6 years, including confiscation of property, and life imprisonment from holding certain positions or engaging in certain activities.
Commercial bribery - a fine of up to 5 000 monthly calculation indices (around 17.3 million Tenge), or corrective labor equal to that amount, or community service of up to 1200 hours, or restriction of freedom for up to 5 years, or imprisonment for the same term.
Provision of unlawful pecuniary remuneration by individuals is punishable with a fine of 200 monthly calculation indices (approximately 690 000 Tenge).
The Criminal Code and the Code of Administrative Offenses apply to administrative offenses committed (commenced, continued, or completed) on the territory of Kazakhstan.
Public officials are prohibited from performing their official functions if a CoI exists.
Public officials are required to take measures to prevent and resolve CoI and to inform in writing their direct supervisor or the management of the public body of any CoI or the possibility of its occurrence as soon as they become aware of it.
In accordance with the Law on Combating Corruption, officials, as well as their family members, are prohibited from accepting material remuneration, gifts, or services for the performance of acts (omission) by the official for the benefit of persons who provided them, if such acts fall within the official authority of the official or he/she by virtue of his/her official position may contribute to such acts (omission).
In accordance with the Law on Public Service, disciplinary offenses that discredit the public service include, inter alia:
According to the Law on Combating Corruption, public officials are prohibited to:
In case of acquisition of stocks (shares) in the authorized capital of commercial organizations and other property, the use of which generates income, except for bonds, stocks of open-end and interval mutual investment funds, an official shall be obliged to transfer them into trust management.
The Chairman of the National Bank of the Republic of Kazakhstan and his deputies, the Chairman of the authorized body on regulation, control, and supervision of the financial market and financial organizations and his deputies - are prohibited from acquiring stocks of investment funds, bonds, shares of commercial organizations.
In accordance with the Law on Civil Service, it is a disciplinary offense discrediting the civil service for a civil servant to use advantages not stipulated by law to obtain loans, credits, purchase securities, real estate, and other property.
Giving of a Bribe (Article 345 of the Criminal Code) - giving a bribe to an official, a foreign official, or an official of an international organization personally or through an intermediary for the official himself/herself to ensure acts (omission), which are within the official's authority or which the official may facilitate by virtue of his/her position, for the benefit of the bribe-giver or persons represented by the bribe-giver as well as offering to accept or promising to give a bribe.
Mediation in Bribery (Article 344 of the Criminal Code) - commission of actions to transfer a bribe on behalf of the bribe-giver or the bribe-taker, or other assistance to the bribe-giver and (or) the bribe-taker in reaching or implementing an agreement between them to receive and give a bribe.
Commercial Bribery (Article 250 of the Criminal Code) - Illegal transfer of money, securities, or other property, as well as the illegal rendering of services of a property nature to a person performing managerial functions in a commercial or other organization for the commission of actions (inaction) in the interests of the giver in connection with the official position occupied by this person.
Giving of a Bribe and Mediation in Bribery - imprisonment for up to 7 years, with or without confiscation of property, and/or a fine of up to 20 000 calculation indexes (2 million Kyrgyz Soms).
Commercial Bribery - imprisonment for up to 10 years, with or without confiscation of property, and/or disqualification from holding certain positions or engaging in certain activities for up to 3 years, and/or corrective labor, and/or a fine of up to 2 000 calculation units (200 000 Kyrgyz Soms).
The provisions of the Criminal Code apply to persons committing an offense in the territory of the Kyrgyz Republic.
The Law on Conflict of Interests requires public officials to avoid potential conflicts of interests in the exercise of their official duties and to resolve existing conflicts of interests by declaring a conflict of interests either in writing or by making a public oral disclosure to his/her superior officer followed by the assignment of responsibility for resolving the conflict of interest to that superior officer.
In addition, the said Law prohibits the following:
The term "officials" in this context includes not only state and municipal officials but also heads of agencies, organizations, or enterprises financed from the state or municipal budget or having state share in their authorized capital, as well as trustees of state property, and persons who do not have the status of state or municipal officials but who work for state bodies.
The Law on State Civil and Municipal Service prohibits servants from receiving non-statutory remuneration (monetary and other remuneration, services, payment for entertainment, recreation, transport expenses) and gifts from individuals and legal entities in connection with the performance of official duties, except for gifts received during protocol events, official business trips, and other official events.
The Law on Conflict of Interests prohibits officials from accepting gifts in connection with the performance of official duties, except for ordinary gifts, the value of which does not exceed 10 calculation indexes (1000 Kyrgyz Soms), and gifts received during official protocol events.
The Law on State Civil and Municipal Service establishes the following prohibitions:
The public servant is allowed to own shares and other securities (stakes, shares in the authorized capital of organizations) provided they are transferred to the trust management.
In accordance with the Law on State Civil and Municipal Service, a public servant shall not, within one year after termination of service:
The provisions of the Criminal Law establishing liability for bribery may be applied to both individuals and legal entities.
In addition, the liability of legal persons for bribery is provided by the Law against Unfair Competition.
The Criminal Law shall apply to anyone who commits a crime within the territory and territorial waters and space of the People's Republic of China. The Law may also apply to any foreigner who commits a crime outside the territory and territorial waters and space of the People's Republic of China against the People's Republic of China or any of its citizens if for that crime this Law prescribes a minimum punishment of fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years.
According to the Criminal Law, any company, enterprise, institution, State organ, or organization, who commits an act that endangers society and is recognized by law as a crime, shall bear criminal responsibility.
The Law against Unfair Competition provides that bribery committed by an employee of a business entity is deemed to have been committed by the business entity unless there is evidence that the act of the employee is irrelevant to creating opportunities or competitive advantages for the business entity.
Giving of a Bribe to a State Functionary (Article 389 of the Criminal Law) - giving money or property to a public official as well as giving a relatively large amount of money or property to a public official or providing a discount or payment for services to a public official as a part of an economic activity in violation of state regulations to obtain illegal gain. "Relatively large amount" shall be considered an amount of 30,000 yuan.
Giving of a Bribe to a Public Body or Organization (Art. 391 of the Criminal Law) - giving money or property to a government agency, state-owned company, enterprise, institution, or people's organization, as well as providing a discount or payment for services to these entities as part of economic activity in violation of state regulations to obtain illegal gain.
Bribery by a Legal Entity (Article 393 of the Criminal Law) – bribing or giving, in violation of state regulations, a discount or payment to a public official in a relatively large amount to obtain an unlawful benefit.
Commercial Bribery (Art. 164 of the Criminal Law) – giving money or property to any employee of a company or enterprise in a relatively large amount to obtain an unlawful benefit.
Commercial bribery, in the context of the fight against the unfair competition - giving a bribe in the form of money, goods, or any other form within the framework of commercial activities, as well as a secret or unrecorded offer of a discount or commission to:
However, a discount and payment of a commission to an intermediary will not be considered a violation if it is properly recorded in the accounting records.
Legal entities are sanctioned for corruption offenses with fines and confiscation of illegal gains.
Under the Law against Unfair Competition, sanctions for bribery include confiscation of illegal gains and fines ranging from 100 000 to 3 million yuan, and in particularly serious cases, the revocation of the business license.
In 2021, a system of blacklists of persons guilty of corruption offenses was also introduced. In the case of blacklisting, offenders may be subject to restrictions on their access to the market in China, as well as confiscation of illegally obtained profits. The authority to maintain the relevant lists and establish liability measures is assigned to provinces, government agencies, and organizations.
A bribe-giver can be exempted from liability if:
In the context of administrative offenses (Law against Unfair Competition), liability does not arise if the organization has sufficient evidence confirming the absence of its guilt (i.e., the purpose of committing illegal actions by its employee was not the search for business opportunities or competitive advantages for the company).
Sanctions for criminal offenses may be mitigated if the defendant:
In administrative offenses (Law against Unfair Competition), sanctions may be mitigated if the offender actively eliminates or alleviates the detrimental consequences of the misconduct.
According to the Opinions on Further Promoting the Simultaneous Investigation of Bribery and Offer of Bribery, if the briber has:
the discipline inspection and supervision organs shall propose lenient punishment to the judiciary in accordance with the law.
Giving of a Bribe to a State Functionary (Article 389 of the Criminal Law) - giving money or property to a public official as well as giving a relatively large amount of money or property to a public official or providing a discount or payment for services to a public official as a part of an economic activity in violation of state regulations to obtain illegal gain. "Relatively large amount" shall be considered an amount of 30,000 yuan.
Giving of a Bribe to a Public Body or Organization (Art. 391 of the Criminal Law) - giving money or property to a government agency, state-owned company, enterprise, institution, or people's organization, as well as providing a discount or payment for services to these entities as part of economic activity in violation of state regulations to obtain illegal gain.
Commercial Bribery (Art. 164 of the Criminal Law) – giving money or property to any employee of a company or enterprise in a relatively large amount to obtain an unlawful benefit.
In the case of bribery of state officials or state bodies and organizations, individuals are liable to imprisonment, up to life imprisonment, and confiscation of property; in the case of commercial bribery, imprisonment for up to 10 years and a fine.
The Criminal Law shall apply to anyone who commits a crime within the territory and territorial waters and space of the People's Republic of China. The Law may also apply to any foreigner who commits a crime outside the territory and territorial waters and space of the People's Republic of China against the People's Republic of China or any of its citizens if for that crime this Law prescribes a minimum punishment of fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years.
Under the Civil Service Law, when a civil servant performs official duties, he shall withdraw under any of the following circumstances:
Civil servants who have husband-wife relationships, direct blood relationships, collateral blood relationships within three generations, or near-in-law relationships shall not hold positions directly subordinate to the same leader in the same organ or positions with direct superior-subordinate relationships and shall not engage in organizational, personnel, discipline inspection, supervision, auditing and financial work in the organ where one of the parties holds a leading position.
In addition, civil servants are not allowed to serve as leading members of the industry regulatory or competent departments of enterprises run by their spouses, children and their spouses, or profit-making organizations.
According to Certain Guidelines for the Integrity of Party Members and Leading Cadres in Politics, Communist Party members and leading officials are prohibited from using their authority and positional influence to seek illegitimate interests.
Under the Interim Provisions on the Prohibition of Commercial Bribery, small advertising gifts in accordance with commercial practice will not be considered a bribe in the commercial context.
Civil servants are prohibited from receiving and giving gifts as part of domestic official activities. In foreign official activities, an official may take and keep gifts with a value of less than 200 yuan; for gifts with a market value higher than 200 yuan,the recipient shall fill out a form declaring any gift and hand it over to the competent authorities or the work unit where the recipient belongs to. The term "gift" refers to presents, gift money, gift certificates, and items received at a symbolic low price.
Communist Party members and leading officials are prohibited from using their authority and positional influence to seek illegitimate interests, including:
Communist Party members and leading officials are prohibited from privately engaging in profit-making activities, including:
These officials are also subject to several prohibitions concerning using authority and positional influence to seek benefits for their relatives.
Specifically, it is prohibited to:
At the same time, in accordance with the Provision on Strictly Prohibiting Party and Government Organs and Party Officials from Doing Business and Running Enterprises, Party and State officials at the municipal and regional levels (including retired officials) are not allowed to engage in business or manage enterprises in the form of sole proprietorship or partnership, to work part-time, to receive dividends on shares, etc., nor are they allowed to fulfil their duties in the form of a sole proprietorship or partnership, or to receive dividends on shares.
Certain employees, except those who hold the posts of chairman and deputy secretaries of the township party committee, chairman and deputy secretaries of the township chief executive, chairman and deputy directors of the township economic and management committee, may establish enterprises and engage in the commercial activities of the relevant enterprises in their spare time, provided that this does not affect the proper performance of their official duties; however, they are not permitted to operate industrial and commercial enterprises that are directly related to the body they manage.
Civil Service Law
Where a civil servant resigns from public office or retires - within 3 years of resignation for civil servants who were formerly leading members and held leading positions at or above the county division level, and within 2 years of resignation for other civil servants - they shall not be hired by enterprises or other organizations directly related to their original position.
Certain Guidelines for the Integrity of Party Members and Leading Cadres in Politics
Communist Party members and leading officials are prohibited, within 3 years after resignation or retirement, from accepting employment from private enterprises, foreign-invested enterprises, and intermediary agencies within the area and business scope under the jurisdiction of their original position or personally engaging in profit-making activities related to the business under the jurisdiction of their original position.
Provision on Further Prohibiting Party and Government Organs and Party and Government Officials from Doing Business and Running Enterprises
According to the Provision, officials who have retired or resigned their office may be employed in state-owned enterprises only with the consent of the Secretariat of the Central Committee and the State Council; employment in a non-state enterprise is allowed 2 years after resignation; employment in an enterprise operating under the jurisdiction of the body in which the official previously held office is not allowed
Non-governmental organizations established in accordance with the requirements, except for political, social, and public organizations recognized by the Constitution and other laws, may be held criminally liable, including for corruption, crimes related to money laundering, and fraud.
The provisions of the Criminal Code apply to all crimes committed throughout the national territory, including the island of Cuba, the island of Juventud, other adjacent islands and reefs, internal waters and territorial sea, the airspace above them, and the radio frequency spectrum.
Legal entities are criminally liable for crimes committed on their behalf if they were committed by decision of their governing or management body or their representative, regardless of whether the individuals involved in the crime are held criminally liable.
Active bribery [in the public sector] – the transfer, directly or through an intermediary, for oneself or for another person, of a reward or gift, or the granting of any other advantage or benefit, as well as the offer or promise thereof, to a public official or civil servant with the aim of causing them to perform, delay or refrain from performing an act related to their official duties.
Active bribery [in the private sector] – the same acts committed by a person representing or performing any function in a cooperative, company, or other non-state entity, provided that the act arises from public service or from his or her relationship with the state or its institutions in the context of economic, financial, or commercial negotiations.
The principal sanctions for legal entities include:
Additional sanctions include:
Mitigating factors for legal entities may include:
Active bribery [in the public sector] – the transfer, directly or through an intermediary, for oneself or for another person, of a reward or gift, or the granting of any other advantage or benefit, as well as the offer or promise thereof, to a public official or civil servant with the intention of causing them to perform, delay, or refrain from performing an act related to their official duties.
Active bribery [in the private sector] – the same acts committed by a person representing or performing any function in a cooperative, company, or other non-state entity , provided that the act stems from public service or from his or her relations with the state or its institutions in the context of economic, financial, or commercial negotiations.
Bribery in the public sector is punishable by imprisonment for a term of 3 to 8 years; in the case of bribery in the private sector, the minimum and maximum sentencing thresholds are reduced by one third, and if the bribery is committed between non-state (private) actors, they are reduced by half.
The provisions of the Criminal Code apply to all crimes committed throughout the national territory, including the island of Cuba, the island of Juventud, other adjacent islands and reefs, internal waters and territorial sea, the airspace above them, and the radio frequency spectrum.
In addition, the Criminal Code applies to foreign citizens who have committed a crime abroad if they are in Cuba and have not been extradited, regardless of whether they reside in the territory of the state where the acts were committed or in any other state, provided that the act is also punishable in the place where it was committed.
Cuban legislation does not provide for uniform requirements relating to conflicts of interest. However, specific provisions may be laid down in legislation governing certain types of public service/activities.
For example, the Code of Ethics for Auditors stipulates that an auditor must refuse to participate in audits in which a conflict of interest may arise due to family or personal relationships and notify their immediate superior thereof.
According to the provisions of the Criminal Code, receiving, accepting an offer or promise, as well as demanding or soliciting, by a public official, directly or through an intermediary, for himself or for another person, remuneration, gift or any other advantage or benefit for performing actions or omissions related to his official duties, is a crime.
According to Decree-Law No. 67/2022, public servants and appointed employees may not hold any other paid position or employment, except for teaching, research, or another position approved by a special decision of the appointing authority or a competent authority, and this must be verified by the employer before the employment relationship is formalized. In addition, holding the position is incompatible with performing other work or activities that directly or indirectly affect the functions of the public servant.
Under Decree-Law No. 13/2020, serving in a state managerial position is incompatible with engaging in other work or activities that directly or indirectly affect the interests or public image of the organization in which the person holds office, or their own.
Additional incompatibility restrictions regarding certain actions in connection with the office held may be established by certain state bodies for their employees or for persons holding positions in specific sectors.
There are no restrictions concerning the revolving door.
Legal entities are subject to criminal liability for corruption offenses.
Article 17A of Law No.694, which establishes the liability of legal entities for corruption, applies to all companies and partnerships established in accordance with Malaysian law, as well as foreign companies and partnerships that carry on a business or part of a business in Malaysia.
A legal entity is liable if a person associated with it corruptly gives, agrees to give, promises or offers to any person any gratification whether for the benefit of that person or another person with intent (a) to obtain or retain business for the commercial organization; or (b) to obtain or retain an advantage in the conduct of business for the commercial organization.
Persons associated with an organization, according to the law, are its directors, partners, employees, and other persons providing services to or on behalf of that company. The question whether or not a person performs services for or on behalf of the commercial organization shall be determined by reference to all the relevant circumstances and not merely by reference to the nature of the relationship between him and the commercial organization.
A legal entity is liable if a person associated with it corruptly gives, agrees to give, promises or offers to any person any gratification whether for the benefit of that person or another person with intent (a) to obtain or retain business for the commercial organization; or (b) to obtain or retain an advantage in the conduct of business for the commercial organization.
"Gratification " may include:
A legal entity shall be liable to a fine of not less than ten times the sum or value of the gratification which is the subject matter of the offence, where such gratification is capable of being valued or is of pecuniary nature, or one million ringgit, whichever is the higher, or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 20 years or to both.
It is a defense for the commercial organization to prove that the commercial organization had in place adequate procedures to prevent persons associated with the commercial organization from undertaking such conduct.
However, having in place adequate procedures to prevent associated persons from corruption offenses is a defense for the commercial organization.
An indicative list of such procedures is set out in the Prime Minister’s Office Guidelines and includes:
Giving gratification by agent
A person commits an offence if he corruptly gives or agrees to give or offers any gratification to any agent as an inducement or a reward for doing or forbearing to do, or for having done or forborne to do any act in relation to his principal’s affairs or business, or for showing or forbearing to show favour or disfavour to any person in relation to his principal’s affairs or business.
For the purpose of this offence, "agent" means any person employed by or acting for another, and includes an officer of a public body or an officer serving in or under any public body, a trustee, an administrator or executor of the estate of a deceased person, a subcontractor, and any person employed by or acting for such trustee, administrator or executor, or subcontractor.
The term "principal" [i.e., the person in whose interest the agent acts] includes any employer, any beneficiary under a trust, any trust estate*, any person beneficially interested in the estate of a deceased person, the estate of a deceased person*, and, in the case of any person serving in or under a public body, the public body [*In the Anglo-Saxon law, indirect recognition of the legal personality of estates is permitted].
"Gratification " may include:
Bribery of officer of public body
Any person who offers to an officer of any public body, or being an officer of any public body solicits or accepts, any gratification as an inducement or a reward for:
commits an offence, notwithstanding that the officer did not have the power, right or opportunity so to do, show or forbear, or accepted the gratification without intending so to do, show or forbear, or did not in fact so do, show or forbear, or that the inducement or reward was not in relation to the affairs of the public body.
The term “officer of a public body” means any person who is a member, an officer, an employee or a servant of a public body, and includes a member of the administration, a member of Parliament, a member of a State Legislative Assembly, a judge of the High Court, Court of Appeal or Federal Court, and any person receiving any remuneration from public funds, and, where the public body is a corporation sole, includes the person who is incorporated as such a member of the government.
Bribery of foreign public officials
Any person who by himself, or by or in conjunction with any other person gives, promises or offers, or agrees to give or offer, to any foreign public official, or being a foreign public official, solicits, accepts or obtains, or agrees to accept or attempts to obtain, whether for the benefit of that foreign public official or of another person, any gratification as an inducement or reward for, or otherwise on account of:
commits an offence, notwithstanding that the foreign public official did not have the power, right or opportunity so to do, show or forbear, or accepted the gratification without intending so to do, show or forbear, or did not in fact so do, show or forbear, or that the inducement or reward was not in relation to the scope of his official duties.
In this context, "foreign official" includes:
The following penalties are provided for corruption offenses:
Law No.694 applies to all crimes committed in Malaysia, as well as crimes committed outside Malaysia by Malaysian citizens and permanent residents.
An officer shall not:
(i) he has allowed his private interests to come into conflict with his public duty so as to impair his usefulness as a public officer; oг
(ii) he has used his public position for his personal advantage.
An officer shall not receive or give, nor shall he allow his spouse or any other person to receive or give on his behalf. directly or indirectly, any present (whether in a tangible form or otherwise) from or to any association, body, person or group of persons if:
An officer may give or accept entertainment of any description or from any person if:
Outside Employment
Save insofar as he is required in the course of his duty or is expressly authorized by his Head of Department to do so, an officer shall not:
(a) take part directly or indirectly in the management or proceedings of any commercial, agricultural or industrial undertaking;
(b) undertake for reward any work for any institution, company, firm or private individual;
(c) as an expert, furnish any report or give expert evidence, whether gratuitously or for reward; or
(d) function as an executor, administrator or receiver.
An officer may apply for written permission from the Head of Depariment to undertake specified services of the type mentioned above for the benefit of himself or his close relatives or for any non-profit-making body of which he is an office holder. When granting permission, the Head of Department shall ensure, among other things, that the outside employment does not in any way tend to conflict with the interest of the department or be inconsistent with the officer's position as a public servant.
Financial Obligations
No officer may borrow from any person or stand as surety to, any borrower, or in any manner place himself under a pecuniary obligation to any person:
An officer may, however, borrow money from or stand as surety to any person who borrows money from banks, insurance companies, co-operative societies, or finance companies licensed under the Banking and Financial Institutions Act 1989 or incur debt through acquiring goods by means of hire-purchase agreements provided that:
Taking into account the above provisions, an officer may incur the following debts:
Other Restrictions
An officer shall not lend money at interest whether with or without security. The placing of money on fixed deposit in any bank or in an account in any bank or in any licensed finance company or in any security or stocks issued by the Government or by any statutory body shall not be regarded as lending money.
No officer shall involve himself in the commodities oт securities futures market as a buyer or seller or otherwise, whether in the local or foreign market.
There are no restrictions concerning the revolving door.
Formally, yes .
The Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Act may apply to organizations, as the term "person" used in it includes a natural person, a juristic person or any body of persons corporate or incorporate.
The same holds for the criminal law (Criminal Code Act in the southern part of the country, Penal Code (Northern States) Federal Provisions Act in the northern part).
Formally, yes.
The provisions of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Act shall, in relation to citizens and persons granted permanent residence in Nigeria, have effect outside as well as within Nigeria, and when an offence under this Act is committed in any place outside Nigeria by any citizen or persons granted permanent residence in Nigeria, he may be dealt with in respect of such offence as if it was committed at any place within Nigeria.
According to the Criminal Code Act, where by the provisions of any Federal law the doing of any act or the making of any omission is constituted an offence those provisions shall apply to every person who is in Nigeria at the time of his doing the act or making the omission.
The Penal Code (Northern States) Federal Provisions Act provides that every person shall be liable to punishment under the Penal Code for every act or omission contrary to the provisions thereof which he shall be guilty within the Northern Region.
The Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Act and criminal codes do not provide for a mechanism for establishing the guilt (mens rea) of a legal entity: all acts require the presence of a subjective element of the crime, but do not describe how to determine it in relation to an organization.
However, based on law enforcement practice (not in corruption cases), it can be assumed that the attribution of guilt to a legal entity in Nigeria is based on common law (the identification/alter ego doctrine): the intent/knowledge of the "guiding mind and will" of the company (director, manager, etc.) is attributed to the company itself.
Formally, legal entities can be held liable for the same offenses as individuals (for the elements of corruption offenses, see the "Individual Liability for Corruption" section).
The Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Act provides for the imposition of a fine of not less than five time the sum or value of the gratification which is the subject-matter of the offence where such gratification is capable of being valued or is of a pecuniary nature, or 10,000 Naira, whichever is the higher, as well as the forfeiture of any property which is proved to be the subject-matter of the offence or to have been used in the commission of the offence. A fine of up to 1 million Nigerian naira may be imposed for accepting illegal remuneration for assisting in the conclusion and execution of contracts.
The Criminal Code Act provides for the forfeiture to the State of any property which has passed in connection with the commission of the offence or if such property cannot be forfeited or cannot be found of such sum as the court shall assess as the value of such property.
Under the Penal Code (Northern States) Federal Provisions Act, one of the penalties for corruption offenses is a fine.
1) Law on Corruption Offenses and Other Related Crimes
Gratification through an agent
A crime occurs when a person gives or agrees to give or offers any gift or consideration to any agent as an inducement or reward for doing or forbearing to do, or for having done, or forborne to do, any act or thing in relation to his principal's affairs or business.
The term "agent" means any person employed by or acting for another and includes an officer of a public body or an officer serving in or under any public body, or a corporate body or any political party or institution, a trustee, an administrator or executor of the estate of a deceased person, a sub-contractor, any person employed by or acting for such trustee, administrator, executor, or subcontractor.
The term "principal" includes any employer, any beneficiary under a trust, any trust estate*, any person beneficially interested in the estate of a deceased person, the estate of a deceased person*, and, in the case of any person serving in or under a public body, the public body. [*In the Anglo-Saxon law, indirect recognition of the legal personality of property masses is permitted].
Bribery of public official
The offense occurs when any person offers to any public officer any gratification as an inducement or a reward for:
notwithstanding that the officer did not have the power, right or opportunity so to do, or that the inducement or reward was not in relation to the affairs of the public body.
Bribery for giving assistance etc in regard to contracts
An offense occurs when any person who, without lawful authority or reasonable excuse, offers an advantage to a public servant as an inducement to or reward for or otherwise on account of such public servant's giving assistance or using influence in, or having given assistance or used influence in:
(i) any contract with a public body for the performance of any work, the providing of any service, the doing of anything or the supplying of any article, material or substance; or
(ii) any sub-contract to perform any work, provide any article, materials or substance required to be performed, provided, done or supplied under any contract with a public body; or
2) Criminal Code Act
An offense is committed when a person:
on account of any such act, omission, favour or disfavour on the part of the public official.
3) Penal Code (Northern States) Federal Provisions Act
An offense occurs when whoever offers or gives or agrees to give any gratification whatever whether pecuniary or otherwise in the circumstances and for any of the purposes mentioned below:
The Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Act provides for the imprisonment for a term of up to 5 or up to 7 years, as well as the imposition of a fine ganging from five time the sum or value of the corrupt gratification up to 1,000,000 Naira – depending on the nature and specific elements of the offense.
The Criminal Code Act provides for imprisonment for up to seven years, as well as for the forfeiture to the State of any property which has passed in connection with the commission of the offence or if such property cannot be forfeited or cannot be found of such sum as the court shall assess as the value of such property.
The Penal Code (Northern States) Federal Provisions Act provides for imprisonment for up to 3 years and/or a fine.
The provisions of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Act shall, in relation to citizens and persons granted permanent residence in Nigeria, have effect outside as well as within Nigeria, and when an offence under this Act is committed in any place outside Nigeria by any citizen or persons granted permanent residence in Nigeria, he may be dealt with in respect of such offence as if it was committed at any place within Nigeria.
According to the Criminal Code Act, where by the provisions of any Federal law the doing of any act or the making of any omission is constituted an offence those provisions shall apply to every person who is in Nigeria at the time of his doing the act or making the omission.
The Penal Code (Northern States) Federal Provisions Act provides that every person shall be liable to punishment under the Penal Code for every act or omission contrary to the provisions thereof which he shall be guilty within the Northern Region.
According to the Code of Conduct, a public officer shall not put himself in a position where his personal interest conflicts with his duties and responsibilities.
The Explanatory Manual of the Code of Conduct also provides specific examples of conflicts of interest:
The Code of Conduct stipulates that a public officer shall not ask for or accept property or benefits of any kind for himself or any other person on account of anything done or omitted to be done by him in the discharge of his duties. In this context, the receipt by a public officer of any gifts or benefits from commercial firms, business enterprises or persons who have contracts with the government shall be presumed to have been received in contravention of the said above unless the contrary is proved.
An official shall only accept personal gifts or benefits from relatives or personal friends to such extent and on such occasions as are recognised by custom; any gift or donation to a public officer on any public or ceremonial occasion shall be treated as a gift to the appropriate institution represented by the public officer. The Explanatory Manual of the Code of Conduct specifies there is no uniformity as to what amounts to gifts or benefits on occasions recognized by custom in different parts of the country, but where a public officer receives a gift and he is in doubt whether such a gift is recognized by custom, he should declare the gift to his employer and register it in the gift register.
According to the Code of Conduct, an official may not:
Certain officials (the President, Vice-President, Governor, Deputy Governor, Minister of the Government of the Federation or Commissioner of the Government of a State, or any other public officer who holds the office of a Permanent Secretary or head of any public corporation, university, or other parastatal organisation) are also prohibited from accepting:
In a situation where the shareholdings or interest in the company was in existence before the officer’s employment, election or appointment to a public office, the officer shall declare such shareholding/interest and recuse himself from participating in any decision-making process involving that company, partnership or other body where he holds shares or has an interest.
Certain categories of former officials (President, Vice President, Chief Justice, Governor, and Deputy Governor) are prohibited from service or employment in foreign companies or foreign enterprises after retirement.
After leaving office and receiving a pension from public funds, officials are also prohibited from holding more than one paid position as chairman, director, or employee in a) a company owned or controlled by the government; or b) any public authority.
Legal persons, except for the government, its official departments, public bodies and institutions, could be criminally liable.
The provisions of the Penal Code shall apply to any person who commits an offense within the country, as well as to anyone who commits outside the country such acts that make him/her an accomplice to an offense that occurred wholly or partially within the country.
In addition, penalties for corruption offenses committed outside the country apply if the offender or victim is a UAE national, or if it is committed by an official in the public or private sector of the country, or if it is committed against public funds.
It is important to note that a fundamental principle of the country's criminal law provides that a person cannot be held liable for the acts of another person, i.e., for example, a parent company located abroad will not be directly liable for the violations of its subsidiary in the UAE; however, such a parent company may be considered an intermediary/co-conspirator.
A legal person shall be criminally liable for offenses committed by its representatives, directors or agents on its behalf or for its benefit.
The offenses provided for in the Penal Code include:
Legal entities can be fined up to AED 5 million.
The bribe-giver or intermediary shall be exempted from liability if he takes the initiative to inform the judicial or administrative authorities of the crime before it is revealed.
However, despite the lack of legislative provisions regarding the anti-corruption measures in organizations, in practice, judicial authorities have shown a willingness to mitigate corporate liability for bribery offences if there is sufficient evidence that an organization has implemented comprehensive anti-corruption compliance program.
The offenses provided for in the Penal Code include:
For individuals the penalty include imprisonment for up to 5 years, a fine equivalent to the amount of the bribe but not less than AED 1,000, and confiscation of the object of the bribe.
The provisions of the Penal Code shall apply to any person who commits an offense within the country, as well as to anyone who commits outside the country such acts that make him/her an accomplice to an offense that occurred wholly or partially within the country.
In addition, penalties for corruption offenses committed outside the country apply if the offender or victim is a UAE national, or if it is committed by an official in the public or private sector of the country, or if it is committed against public funds.
When performing official duties, an employee shall avoid any conflict of interests that may occur between his/her private activities and the interests of the government and its operations.
An employee shall also avoid any work in respect of which any suspicions of conflict of interest may arise, including but not limited to the following:
In addition, it is prohibited to employ relatives up to the 2nd degree of consanguinity or any person related by blood or marriage, as well as to work with the above-mentioned relatives in the same structural unit or in direct subordination. In any case, employees should not be involved in hiring, transfer or promotion decisions related to any of these relatives.
Employees are strictly forbidden to accept any gifts except for those of a symbolic or promotional nature that bear the logo and name of the presenting party.
Employees are also strictly forbidden to offer, give, request or accept any bribe. The bribe involves giving a payment or providing a service or any giving of either commercial or moral value to a public employee in order to corrupt the course of business to:
An employee shall also avoid any work in respect of which any suspicions of conflict of interest may arise, including but not limited to the following:
Employees are also not allowed to be employed by others, on a paid or an unpaid basis without the prior written consent of their federal entity. In all cases employees’ work with third parties shall not negatively affect their job duties and tasks, and shall not reflect negatively on the federal entity.
There are no restrictions concerning the revolving door.
Although there are no specific provisions in criminal legislation on the liability of legal persons for corruption offenses, the existing case law demonstrates that legal persons may be held criminally liable in certain circumstances. In particular, according to the position of the Supreme Court, a company is subject to criminal liability as Article 2 of the Penal Code provides every person shall be liable to punishment under this Code, while under Article 11, "person" includes any company or association, or body of persons, whether incorporated or unincorporated.
Under the provisions of the Penal Code, every person shall be liable to punishment for offenses committed within Pakistan under this Code and not otherwise for every act or omission contrary to the provisions thereof, of which he shall be guilty within Pakistan.
Since there are no specific provisions under criminal law on the liability of legal persons, possible approaches to bring organizations liable are based on existing case law.
In particular, the courts may impose sanctions on legal persons:
No separate criminal offenses are provided for legal persons.
The Penal Code does not provide for sanctions imposed on legal entities.
Under the Anti-Money Laundering Act, fines for legal entities can be as high as 100 million rupees.
However, according to existing case law, where the offense involves serious fraud or affects the interests of the general public, courts may apply the legal theory of "piercing the corporate veil": if it is proven that high-level individuals of a company (executive director, director, etc.) commit an offense in their personal interests while "covering up" by company interests, the individual concerned will be held liable, not the company.
There is no statutory procedure for holding legal persons liable.
There is no separate offense of active bribery.
However, under Article 165-A of the Penal Code, whoever abets any offense punishable under Section 161 (Public servant taking gratification other than legal remuneration in respect to an official act) or Section 165 (Public servant obtaining valuable thing, without consideration from person concerned in proceeding or business transacted by such public servant) shall, regardless of whether the offense abetted is committed in consequence of the abetment, be punished with the punishment provided for the offense.
In addition, according to the National Accountability Ordinance, a holder of a public office, or any other person, is said to commit or to have committed the corruption offense if he/she aids, assists, abets, attempts, or acts in conspiracy with a person or a holder of public office accused of an offense.
Under the Penal Code, considering that the same sanctions apply to bribe-givers as to bribe-takers, individuals are subject to imprisonment for up to 3 years and/or a fine.
The National Accountability Ordinance provides for individuals such sanctions as imprisonment for up to 14 years and confiscation of illegally obtained assets.
Under the provisions of the Penal Code, every person shall be liable to punishment for offenses committed within Pakistan under this Code and not otherwise for every act or omission contrary to the provisions thereof, of which he shall be guilty within Pakistan.
Under the Government Servants (Conduct) Rules, no public servant shall, except with the previous sanction of the Government, accept or permit any member of his/her family to accept, from any person, any gift the receipt of which will place him under any form of official obligation to the donor. If, however, due to very exceptional reasons, a gift cannot be refused, the same may, under intimation to the Cabinet Division, be kept for official use in the Department or Organization in which he is working.
However, under the Office Memorandum "Procedure for Acceptance and Disposal of Gifts", public functionaries except for the President and Head of Government are prohibited from receiving gifts of any kind for their person or for members of their families from diplomats, consular, and other foreign government representatives who are stationed in Pakistan or from any public organization or private individual or firm within the country.
However, if, due to very exceptional reasons, the gift cannot be declined, it shall invariably be deposited in the Toshakhana [a special body established for the storage of gifts].
Loans
No public servant shall lend money to, borrow money from, or place himself/herself under any pecuniary obligation to any person within the local limits of his/her authority or any person with whom he/she has any official dealings. The above rule shall not apply to dealings in the ordinary course of business with a joint stock company, bank, or firm of standing.
When a government servant is appointed or transferred to a post of such a nature that a person from whom he/she has borrowed money or to whom he/she has otherwise placed himself/herself under a pecuniary obligation will be subject to his/her official authority, or will reside, possess immovable property, or carry on business within the local limits of such authority, he/she shall forthwith declare the circumstances to the Government through the usual channel.
Securities
No public servant shall
If any question arises whether a security or an investment is of the nature referred to in any of the previous sub-rules, the decision of the Government thereon shall be final.
Membership in the Governing Bodies of Organizations
No public servant shall, except with the previous sanction of the Government, take part in the promotion, registration, or management of any bank or company.
Outside Employment
No public servant shall, except with the previous sanction of the Government, engage in any trade or undertake any employment or work other than his/her official duties. Provided that he/she/she may, without such sanction, undertake honorary work of a religious, social, or charitable nature or occasional work of a literary or artistic character, subject to the conditions that his/her official duties do not thereby suffer and that the occupation or undertaking does not conflict or is not inconsistent with his/her position or obligations as a public servant but he/she shall not undertake or shall discontinue such work if so directed by the Government.
No public servant shall associate himself/herself with any private trust, foundation, or similar other institution which is not sponsored by the Government.
Article 19.28 of the Code of the Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation (CAO) provides for administrative responsibility for unlawful remuneration on behalf of a legal entity.
The CAO applies to administrative offenses committed on the territory of the Russian Federation.
A foreign legal entity that has committed an administrative offense under Article 19.28 outside the Russian Federation but aimed against the interests of the Russian Federation is also subject to administrative liability.
The law does not specify the list of persons whose actions constitute grounds for corporate liability. The main criterion is the commission of unlawful acts on behalf or in the interests of a legal entity.
Illegal transfer, offer or promise on behalf of or in the interests of a legal entity or in the interests of an associated entity to a public official, a person performing managerial functions in a commercial or other organization, a foreign public official or an official of a public international organization of money, securities or other property, the provision of property services or property rights (including where, on the instructions of an official, a person performing managerial functions in a commercial or other organization, a foreign official or an official of a public international organization, money, securities or other property is transferred, offered or promised, property services are provided or property rights are granted to another natural or legal person) for the commission of the act (omission) in the interests of the legal entity or in the interests of its associated entity by the public official, the person performing managerial functions in a commercial or other organization, the foreign public official or the official of a public international organization due to the position held by him/her.
The following sanctions are provided for legal entities:
The legal entity is exempted from liability if it has contributed to the detection of an administrative offense, the administrative investigation, and/or the detection, uncovering, and investigation of a criminal offense related to the administrative offense, or if extortion occurred.
This exemption from liability does not apply when unlawful remuneration is paid to foreign officials or officials of international organizations in business transactions.
Besides, the provisions of Article 2.1(2) of the CAO provide that a legal entity is considered guilty of an administrative offense only if it is found that it had an opportunity to comply with the established rules and regulations but did not take all the measures it could to ensure their fulfillment.
According to the CAO, the penalty may be mitigated in the case of:
A judge, body, or official dealing with the administrative case may recognize as mitigating factors other circumstances than those specified in the CAO.
Aggravating circumstances under the CAO include:
The obligation is stipulated by Article 13.3 of Federal Law No. 273-FZ "On Combating Corruption.
The obligation applies to all types of organizations.
Measures to prevent corruption in the organization may include:
Criminal Code:
The Criminal Code provides for a number of other corruption offenses, including in specific areas: state procurement, state defense contracts, hosting of sporting events, etc.
The following sanctions are provided for individuals:
Foreign nationals not permanently residing in the Russian Federation who have committed a crime outside the Russian Federation are liable under the Criminal Code in cases where the crime is directed against the interests of the Russian Federation or a citizen of the Russian Federation, or a stateless person permanently residing in the Russian Federation, as well as in cases provided for in an international treaty of the Russian Federation or any other international instrument containing obligations recognized by the Russian Federation in the sphere of relations regulated by the Criminal Code, if foreign nationals not permanently residing in the Russian Federation have not been convicted in a foreign state and are prosecuted in the territory of the Russian Federation.
Public office holders, state and municipal servants, and certain categories of SOEs employees are obliged to inform the employer of such a personal interest in the performance of official duties that may cause a conflict of interests and to take measures to prevent it.
Preventing or resolving a conflict of interests may include changing the position of the official (servant, employee) who is a party to the conflict of interests, including his/her suspension from performing his/her duties in the prescribed manner and/or waiving the benefit that caused the conflict of interests.
Failure to take measures to prevent and resolve conflict of interests is subject to the most severe form of disciplinary punishment - dismissal for loss of trust.
Public office holders, state and municipal servants, and certain categories of SOE employees are prohibited from receiving gifts from individuals and legal entities in connection with their official duties.
Gifts received during protocol events, official business trips, and other official events shall be recognized as the property of the Russian Federation, a region of the Russian Federation, or a municipal entity, respectively, and shall be transferred by an act to the relevant state or municipal body. A person who has transferred a gift received during protocol events, official business trips, or other official events may redeem it according to the procedure established by the legal acts of the Russian Federation.
Outside Employment
Most public office holders and public servants are prohibited from doing other paid activities outside the office except pedagogical, scientific, and other creative activities.
For certain categories of officials, restrictions related to the outside paid activity are formulated in a different way, e.g.:
There are also restrictions on the performance of outside paid activities depending on the sources of their funding, as follows:
Membership in the Governing Bodies of Organizations
Except in the cases stipulated by law, a person holding state or municipal office, state or municipal servant is prohibited from being involved in managing a commercial or non-commercial organization.
Persons holding state or municipal offices and state and municipal servants are not allowed to be members of management bodies, boards of trustees or supervisory boards, or other bodies of foreign non-profit, non-governmental organizations, and their subdivisions operating in the territory of the Russian Federation.
Securities Ownership
Any person holding a position requiring the obligation to take measures to prevent and resolve conflict of interests is prohibited from owning securities (stakes, shares in authorized capitals of organizations) if this causes or may cause a conflict of interests. In the case of ownership of such securities (stakes, shares in authorized capitals of organizations), the official must put them into trust management in accordance with the civil law of the Russian Federation.
An individual holding a public official position included in the list of designated positions cannot, for a period of two years after his/her dismissal from that position, be employed by an organization on the basis of an employment contract or a civil law contract, if certain functions of public administration of that organization were part of his/her official duties, without the consent of the commission for compliance with the requirements of official conduct and regulation of conflicts of interests.
A legal entity may be held criminally liable for bribery under the Anti-Bribery Law.
According to Article 19 of the Anti-Bribery Law, the penalty can be imposed against any national or foreign private company or establishment.
A legal entity may be held liable where the manager or any of the employees thereof is convicted of any of the offences provided for in the Anti-Bribery Law if proven that the offence is committed in its favor.
The competent authority responsible for adjudging bribery offences shall impose sanctions against any national or foreign private company or establishment for any of the offences provided for in the Anti-Bribery Law, in particular:
(1) offering or granting to a public official a gift or payment of any sort, or a promise thereof, as a consideration for:
2) promising, offering or granting a gift to any person working for private or cooperative societies, private organizations, companies, sole proprietorships, or professional bodies, in any capacity, whether for his/her own benefit or the benefit of others, for the unlawful performance or nonperformance of his/her duties;
3) knowingly agreeing, inciting, or assisting in the commission of any of such offences.
The organization may be sanctioned with a fine not exceeding 10 times the value of the bribe or debarred from procurement or project execution contracts with ministries, public corporate entities.
In addition, if any national or foreign private company or establishment is banned from entering into any contracts, the government agency contracting therewith shall submit to the Council of Ministers its opinion on ongoing contracts with such company or establishment, even if the government agency is not connected to the offence subject of the judgment.
At the same time, the Law on Government Tenders and Procurement System provides that a government entity must terminate the contract [with any company or establishment] if it becomes clear that the contracting party has attempted - directly or indirectly - to bribe an employee of [any government entities], or has obtained the contract through bribery, fraud, deceit, forgery or manipulation, or was involved [in such improper activities] during the performance of the contract.
The legislation specifies that a briber or mediator shall be exempted from original and consequential punishments if he/she informs the authorities prior to the discovery of the offence.
The legislation does not provide for a separate offence of active bribery in the public sector, but it is defined that:
Bribery in the public sector, in turn, is defined as a public official soliciting, accepting or receiving for himself/herself or for others a gift or payment of any sort, or a promise thereof, as a consideration for:
A "gift or promise" is defined as any benefit or privilege obtained by the bribee, regardless of its type or designation, whether material or otherwise.
"Public officials" include:
With regard to active bribery in the private sector, the legislation recognizes as an offence promising, offering or granting a gift to any person working for private or cooperative societies, private organizations, companies, sole proprietorships, or professional bodies, in any capacity, whether for his own benefit or the benefit of others, for the unlawful performance or nonperformance of his duties.
In addition, any person who knowingly agrees, incites, or assists in committing such offences shall be considered an accomplice and punished as provided for in the relevant Article of the Anti-Bribery Law if the offence is perpetrated as a result of said agreement, incitement, or assistance.
Under the Anti-Bribery Law, the briber, the mediator, and any accomplice in any of the offences set forth in this Law shall be punished as provided for in the relevant Article.
Bribery in the public sector, as well as active bribery where the bribe is not accepted by the bribe-taker, is punishable by a penalty of up to 10 years' imprisonment and/or a fine of up to 1 million rials.
Active bribery in the private sector is punishable by up to 5 years imprisonment and/or a fine of up to 500,000 rials.
The sanctions for persons who is assigned by the bribee or the briber to take a bribe and knowingly accepts the same are up to 2 years' imprisonment and/or a fine of up to 50,000 rials.
In addition to the basic penalties, confiscation of the bribe is provided for in all cases.
At the same time, the legislation stipulates that a briber or mediator shall be exempted from original and consequential punishments if he/she informs the authorities prior to the discovery of the offence.
The Anti-Bribery Law does not specify the jurisdictional aspects of application of its provisions.
However, since the offences under the Law are subject-matter specific to public officials, in theory, any natural person could be liable - at least in cases where the offences are committed within Saudi Arabia.
The Code of Conduct and Public Ethics provides that a public employee should:
Conflict of interest situations include, but are not limited to, the following:
The Code of Conduct and Public Ethics also prohibits favoritism or nepotism in the performance of official tasks and duties.
CoI provisions are also included in the public procurement legislation. For certain categories of persons - the head of the government agency (his/her designee), members of the board of directors of the government agency, employees engaged in preparation or drafting tender documents, regardless the nature of their engagement, members of the bid opening committee, bid review committee, as well as technical and financial sub-committees, experts performing any tasks for the government agency relating to preparation of tender documents or review or evaluation of bids – the following restrictions are established:
The following situations shall be considered a conflict of interest in procurement activities:
The Anti-Bribery Law does not separate the concept of "gift" and "bribe", stating that any benefit or privilege, regardless of its type or designation, whether material or otherwise, is considered a bribe.
According to the Civil Service Law, public employees are prohibited from accepting gifts, gratuities or other benefits, personally or through an intermediary, if the gifts are presumably given to entice interested parties.
The Code of Conduct and Public Ethics prohibits public employees from:
Public employees are prohibited from engaging directly or indirectly in commerce, from participating in the establishment of companies, accepting membership of their boards of directors or serving on them, unless they are appointed by the government. Public employees may be authorized to work in the private sector only outside of working hours.
A public employee shall not engage in other professional activities while in office. However, if the activity is necessary in the public interest, the employee may be authorized, by the decision of the minister concerned and subject to the law, to engage in such activities.
The public procurement legislation prohibits certain categories of persons - the head of the government agency (his/her designee), members of the board of directors of the government agency, public employees engaged in preparation or drafting tender documents, regardless of the nature of their engagement, members of the bid opening committee, bid review committee, as well as technical and financial sub-committees, experts performing any tasks for the government agency relating to preparation of tender documents or review or evaluation of bids – from accepting, directly or indirectly, any job offer from the bidder without prior disclosure to the government agency he/she works for if such offer results from an actual CoI.
The legislation does not provide separate corpus delicti of corruption for legal entities. However, organizations can still be held administratively liable in certain cases for administrative offenses committed by individuals.
In accordance with Article 31 of the Code of Administrative Offenses (CAO), if it is not specified that the established norms apply only to an individual or a legal entity, they equally apply to both individuals and legal entities, except in cases where the meaning of these norms relate and can be applied only to an individual or a legal entity.
Foreign nationals, stateless persons, and foreign legal entities (their representative offices, branches, etc.) being on the territory of the Republic of Tajikistan shall bear administrative liability for committing administrative offenses on a general basis, except for foreign citizens enjoying the right of diplomatic immunity.
A legal entity may be held administratively liable for actions or omissions of an individual found guilty of an administrative offense if it is established that this individual, being a representative (member, head) of a legal entity, committed illegal actions for its benefit.
Art. 671 of the CAO establishes administrative liability for providing tangible and intangible benefits, services, and advantages to officials and equivalent persons authorized to perform public functions to induce them to a corresponding action (act or omission) in the interests of the person providing these benefits or services in the absence of evidence of a crime.
In addition, a legal entity shall be held administratively liable if it is established that it had the possibility of complying with the rules and norms, for violation of which administrative responsibility is provided, but did not take all measures depending on it to comply with them.
The following types of penalties can be applied to legal entities:
However, the judge, authorized public body, or authorized official considering the case on administrative offense may release the person who committed the administrative offense from administrative liability and penalties and limit the punishment to an oral reprimand if the administrative offense is of minor significance. An offense is recognized as of minor significance if it caused material damage to a natural person in the amount of up to 1 calculation index (68 Tajik Somoni) and to a legal entity up to 10 calculation indexes (680 Tajik Somoni).
Circumstances mitigating administrative liability are:
Circumstances aggravating administrative liability include:
Giving a bribe to a public official, a foreign public official, or an official of an international organization directly or through an intermediary (Article 320(1) of the Criminal Code).
Giving a bribe to a public official, a foreign public official, or an official of an international organization for knowingly committing illegal acts (omission) or giving a bribe repeatedly (Article 320(2) of the Criminal Code).
Commercial Bribery (Art. 279 of the Criminal Code) - unlawful giving of money, securities, or other property, as well as illegal providing of services of material nature to a person performing managerial functions in commercial or other organization for performing acts (omission) in the interests of the giver by virtue of the position held by this person.
Provision of tangible and intangible benefits to officials authorized to perform public functions (Article 671 of the CAO) - Provision of tangible and intangible benefits, services, and advantages to officials and equivalent persons authorized to perform public functions to induce them to a corresponding action (act or omission) in the interests of the person providing these benefits or services in the absence of evidence of a crime.
Giving a bribe - imprisonment for up to 10 years and a fine of up to 9125 calculation units (620,500 Tajik Somoni).
Commercial bribery - a fine of up to 800 calculation units (54,400 Tajik Somoni) or deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for up to 2 years or restriction of freedom for up to 3 years or imprisonment for up to 4 years.
Provision of tangible and intangible benefits to officials authorized to perform public functions - a fine of up to 30 calculation units (2040 Tajik Somoni).
Under Article 14 of the Criminal Code, a person who commits a crime on the territory of Tajikistan shall be held liable in accordance with the Criminal Code. The term "committing a crime in the territory of Tajikistan" means an act that was:
Under Article 32 of the Code of Administrative Offenses, foreign nationals, stateless persons, and foreign legal entities (their representative offices, branches, etc.) being on the territory of the Republic of Tajikistan shall bear administrative liability for committing administrative offenses on a general basis, except for foreign citizens enjoying the right of diplomatic immunity.
According to the Code of Ethics of a Public Servant of the Republic of Tajikistan, public servants are required to take measures to prevent conflicts of interests, resolve arising cases of conflict of interests, and avoid actions related to the influence of personal, pecuniary (financial), commercial and other interests and hindering the performance of official duties in good faith.
In accordance with the Law on Public Service, if a public servant's personal interest interferes with the performance of his/her official duties, contradicts public interest, or causes other situations of conflict of interest, he/she must inform the head of the public body authorized to appoint and dismiss the public servant.
According to the Code of Ethics of a Public Servant, a civil servant must avoid receiving and giving gifts for the performance of functions of public authorities and their official duties, including business trips, both in material (money, gifts) and non-material (services) form.
The Law on Combating Corruption establishes the following prohibitions for public officials:
In addition, failure to comply with certain restrictions related to receiving gifts will be considered a corruption-related offense, namely:
The Law on Public Service establishes the following prohibitions for public servants:
In accordance with the Law on Combating Corruption, public officials are prohibited from engaging in outside paid work except for scientific, creative, and pedagogical activities.
The same law establishes that corruption-related offenses include:
At the same time, under the Law on Combating Corruption and the CAO, it is a corruption-related offense for a public official to use advantages not provided for by law in obtaining and returning credits, loans from banks and other organizations, purchasing securities, real estate, and other property, paying state taxes and fulfilling other obligations.
Legal entities (juristic persons) may be held criminally liable.
For the purposes of anti-corruption legislation, juristic person means juristic person established under Thai laws and juristic person established under the foreign laws which operates business in Thailand.
A juristic person shall be deemed to have committed the offence in case the offender is a person associated with juristic person and the action was taken for the benefit of such juristic person, provided that such juristic person does not have in place appropriate internal control measures to prevent the commission of such offence.
In this context, a person associated with a juristic person means a representative, employee, agent, affiliated company, or any person acting for or on behalf of such juristic person, regardless of whether having the power or authority to take such action.
Any person who gives, offers to give, or promises to give any property or benefit to a public official, foreign public official, official of a public international organization with an intent to induce such person to wrongfully perform, not perform or delay the performance of any duty in his or her office shall be liable.
Legal entities are subject to a fine of one to two times of the damages caused or benefits received.
According to the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) Guidelines, if the juristic person has in place appropriate internal control measures to prevent bribery, such entity will not be liable. However, implementation of internal control measures under the NACC’s Guidelines is not an absolute guarantee against liability of bribery. Facts and supporting evidence would also be required in determining such liability in judicial courts. To determine whether a juristic person has adequate or appropriate internal control measures, there might not be a conclusive method. That would rather depend on various factors of each particular entity, e.g. nature of business, level of risk of bribery of public officials, etc
However, the absence of appropriate internal control measures to prevent the commission of offence by associated persons is one of the elements of the offense applicable to legal persons.
For the purposes of anti-corruption legislation, juristic person means juristic person established under Thai laws and juristic person established under the foreign laws which operates business in Thailand.
According to the Anti-Corruption Commission Guidelines, to determine whether a juristic person has adequate or appropriate internal control measures, there might not be a conclusive method. That would rather depend on various factors of each particular entity, e.g. nature of business, level of risk of bribery of public officials, etc
However, the Guidelines provide an indicative list of principles that internal control measures implemented by organizations should comply with:
According to the Organic Act on Anti-Corruption, a crime is occurred when any person who gives, offers to give, or promises to give any property or benefit to a public official, foreign public official, official of a public international organization with an intent to induce such person to wrongfully perform, not perform or delay the performance of any duty in his or her office.
A similar offense is provided by the Criminal Code.
The Organic Act on Anti-Corruption provides for punishment for bribery in the form of imprisonment for a term of not exceeding 5 years, or a fine of not exceeding 100,000 Baht, or to both; the Criminal Code provides for imprisonment for up to 5 years and/or a fine of up to 10,000 Baht.
According to the provisions of the Criminal Code, anyone who commits an offence in the Kingdom [of Thailand] shall be punished according to the law.
A Member of the House of Representatives and Senator shall not:
These prohibitions also apply to spouses and children of Members of the House of Representatives or Senators and also to persons other than spouses and children of such members of the House of Representatives or Senators who act as agents or partners of, or who are entrusted by Members of the House of Representatives or Senators to act under this section.
Similar restrictions apply to Ministers, except for the following cases:
In addition, a Minister shall neither be a partner or shareholder of a partnership or a company, nor retain partner or shareholder status of a partnership or a company up to the limit as provided by law, and shall not be an employee of any person. In the case where any Minister intends to continue to receive benefits in the cases under paragraph one, such Minister shall inform the President of the National Anti-Corruption Commission within thirty days from the date of the appointment, and shall transfer his or her shares in such partnership or company to a juristic person which manages assets for the benefit of other persons, as provided by law. The Minister shall not be involved in the administration or management of shares or affairs of the partnership or company under paragraph two in any way.
Members of the Board/Commission/Committee, persons holding positions in an independent agencies and public officials as prescribed by the NACC are prohibited from undertake the followings:
The same restrictions apply to spouses of officials, including persons living together as husband and wife without registering marriage certificate. Undertaking of business by the spouse shall be deemed as undertaking of business of the public official except in the case where the spouse has undertaken such business prior to the public official’s taking of office.
Public officials are prohibited from accepting assets or any other benefits which may be calculated in monetary value from any person except for the assets or benefit which may be entitled to such persons under the laws, regulations or rules permitted by virtue of law, unless the acceptance of assets or other benefits is on ethical basis under the criteria and amount as prescribed by the NACC.
In turn, the NACC Notice No.17 stipulates that officials shall receive property or any other benefit on ethical basis only as follows:
A Member of the House of Representatives and Senator shall not:
These prohibitions also apply to spouses and children of Members of the House of Representatives or Senators and also to persons other than spouses and children of such members of the House of Representatives or Senators who act as agents or partners of, or who are entrusted by Members of the House of Representatives or Senators to act under this section.
Similar restrictions apply to Ministers, except for the following cases:
In addition, a Minister shall neither be a partner or shareholder of a partnership or a company, nor retain partner or shareholder status of a partnership or a company up to the limit as provided by law, and shall not be an employee of any person. In the case where any Minister intends to continue to receive benefits in the cases under paragraph one, such Minister shall inform the President of the National Anti-Corruption Commission within thirty days from the date of the appointment, and shall transfer his or her shares in such partnership or company to a juristic person which manages assets for the benefit of other persons, as provided by law. The Minister shall not be involved in the administration or management of shares or affairs of the partnership or company under paragraph two in any way.
Members of the Board/Commission/Committee, persons holding positions in an independent agencies and public officials as prescribed by the NACC are prohibited from undertake the followings:
According to NACC Notice No.22, the list of public officials subject to the relevant restrictions includes:
The same restrictions apply to spouses of officials, including persons living together as husband and wife without registering marriage certificate. Undertaking of business by the spouse shall be deemed as undertaking of business of the public official except in the case where the spouse has undertaken such business prior to the public official’s taking of office.
Within two years as from the date of vacation from office, members of a Board/Commission/Committee, persons holding office in independent agencies, persons holding high-ranking positions and persons holding political positions as prescribed by the NACC are prohibited from being a relevant stakeholder as a member of the Board, consultant, agent, staff or employee in private entity under the supervision, monitoring, control, or inspection of a state agency to which such public official is attached or performs duties as the public official which, by nature of such business interest of the private entity, may be in conflict to or against the public interest or government interest, or affect the independence of the performance of duties of such public official.
The relevant list of persons, according to Anti-Corruption Commission Notice No.25, includes the same categories of persons as in Anti-Corruption Commission Notice No.22, with the exception of persons replacing heads of municipal entities.
The provisions on acceptance of assets or any other benefits stipulated for officials shall apply mutatis mutandis to the acceptance of assets or other benefits of a person who has vacated office of a public official for less than 2 years.
Formally, yes .
Offenses under the Anti-Corruption Act are committed by a "person". At the same time, according to the Interpretation Act, the term "person" includes any company or association or body of persons corporate or unincorporate.
The Anti-Corruption Act does not contain provisions on the application of its provisions to foreign persons. Issues of territorial jurisdiction are governed by the general rules of Ugandan criminal law, according to which the jurisdiction of Ugandan courts extends to any place within Uganda.
The legislation does not provide for a mechanism for establishing the guilt (mens rea) of a legal entity.
Formally, legal entities can be held liable for the same offenses as individuals (for the elements of corruption offenses, see the "Individual Liability for Corruption" section).
Penalties for corruption offenses include a fine of up to 240 currency points (4.8 million shillings), and if the crime was related to a government contract/tender/subcontract, up to 288 currency points (5.76 million shillings).
In addition, the legislation provides for the mandatory recovery of unlawful gains, compensation to victims, and the possibility of confiscating the property that is the subject of or derived directly or indirectly from the act of corruption.
The following are considered crimes:
"Agent" means a person employed by or acting for another, and includes a trustee, an administrator and executor, and a person employed in the public service or under a corporation or a public body, and, for the purposes of the last offense listed above, a subcontractor and a person who is employed by or acting for the subcontractor.
"Principal" includes an employer, a beneficiary under a trust, and a trust estate as though it were a person and any person beneficially interested in the estate of a deceased person as though the estate were a person and in the case of a person employed in the public service or a public body, includes the Government or the public body, as the case may be.
Corruption offenses are punishable by imprisonment for up to 10 years and/or a fine of up to 240 currency points (4.8 million shillings), and if the crime was related to a government contract/tender/subcontract, up to 12 years and/or 288 currency points (5.76 million shillings).
In addition, the legislation provides for the mandatory recovery of unlawful gains, compensation to victims, and the possibility of confiscating the property that is the subject of or derived directly or indirectly from the act of corruption.
The Anti-Corruption Act does not contain provisions on the application of its provisions to foreign persons. Issues of territorial jurisdiction are governed by the general rules of Ugandan criminal law, according to which the jurisdiction of Ugandan courts extends to any place within Uganda.
A conflict of interest is a situation where a public officer has got to make a decision between his or her personal interest and public interest.
According to the Leadership Code (Amendment) Act, a conflict of interest concerning senior officials (leaders) arises where:
A public officer shall not award a contract, or influence the award of a contract, to:
At the same time, a leader, a leader’s spouse, agent, private company or public company or business enterprise in which the leader, leader’s spouse or agent has a controlling interest shall not seek, accept or hold any contract with:
A public officer or any member of his or her family shall not solicit or accept valuable gifts, presents, hospitality gratuity or favor or other benefits, if he or she has reason to believe that the acceptance of such gifts, presents and other benefits is bound to influence his or her judgement or action in a matter he or she is dealing with or will handle in future.
A public officer is also prohibited to give such gifts to influence the judgement or action of another person in his or her favors.
A public officer may accept or give a gift if the gift is in the nature of a souvenir or ornament and does not exceed 5 currency points in value, as well as it is a personal gift or donation from a relative or personal friend for such an extent and on such occasion as is recognized by custom.
For senior officials, it is also established that if the value of such gifts exceeds 10 currency points from any one source in a twelve consecutive months period, the leader shall disclose that gift, or benefit to the Inspector General.
A gift or donation to a leader on any public or ceremonial occasion, or commission to a leader on any transaction shall be treated as a gift or donation or commission to the Government or institution represented by the leader and shall he declared to the Inspector General.
A public officer shall not hold two jobs at any point in time (moonlighting), and shall not draw two salaries from government payrolls.
A public officer shall not engage in any arrangement that would cause him or her financial embarrassment, e.g. bankruptcy.
A leader shall not hold am office of profit or emolument likely to compromise his or her office.
Certain officials are also prohibited, except with prior written approval of the Inspector General:
A leader shall not allow himself or herself to be influenced in the pursuit of his or her official duties and responsibilities by plans or expectations for or offers of future employment.
A leader shall disclose in writing to the Inspector General all offers of future employment that could place the leader in a position of conflict of interest. A leader who accepts an offer of future employment shall immediately disclose in writing to the Inspector General as well as the authorised person the acceptance of the offer, and in such event, where it is determined by the InspectorGeneral that the leader is engaged in significant official dealings with the future employer, the leader shall be assigned other duties and responsibilities immediately.
Upon vacation of office, a leader may not:
Giving of a Bribe (Article 211 of the Criminal Code) - knowingly illegal giving to an official of a public body, organization with state participation or self-governing authority of citizens, directly or through an intermediary, of material benefits or pecuniary gain for performance or non-performance in the interests of the bribe-giver of a specific action, which the official must or could perform using his/her official position.
Bribing an employee of a public body, an organization with state participation or a self-governing authority of citizens (Article 213 of the Criminal Code) - knowingly illegal giving to an employee of a public body, organization with state participation or a self-governing authority of citizens of material benefits or pecuniary gain for performance or non-performance in the interests of the bribe-giver of a specific action, which the employee must or could perform using his/her official position, committed after an administrative punishment for the same actions.
Mediation in Bribery (Art. 212 of the Criminal Code) – acting to reach an agreement to receive or give a bribe, as well as directly transferring a bribe on behalf of interested parties.
Commercial Bribery (Article 192.9 of the Criminal Code) - knowingly unlawfully giving to an official of a non-state commercial or other non-state organization material benefits or pecuniary gain for performance or non-performance in the interests of the bribe-giver of a specific action, which the said official must or could perform using his/her authority.
Bribery of an employee of a non-state commercial or other non-state organization (Article 192.10 of the Criminal Code) - knowingly unlawfully giving an employee of a non-state commercial or other non-state organization material benefits or pecuniary gain for the performance or non-performance in the interest of the bribe-giver of specific actions, which the employee must or could perform using his/her authority, committed after an administrative punishment for the same actions.
Bribery of an employee of a non-state commercial or other non-state organization (Article 61.1 of the Code of Administrative Liability) - knowingly unlawfully giving an employee of a non-state commercial or other non-state organization material benefits or pecuniary gain for the performance or non-performance in the interest of the bribe-giver of a particular action which the employee must or could perform using his/her authority.
Bribery of an official of a public body, organization with state participation or a self-governing authority of citizens (Article 193.1 of the Code of Administrative Liability) - knowingly unlawfully giving an official of a public body, organization with state participation or a self-governing authority of citizens material benefits or pecuniary gain for the performance or non-performance in the interest of the bribe-giver of an action which the official must or could perform using his/her authority.
Giving of a bribe (to an official of a public authority/organization), mediation in bribery - fine of up to 100 basic calculation units (30 million Uzbek Soums), or restriction of freedom for up to 5 years, or imprisonment for up to 15 years.
Bribery of an employee of a public authority/organization - fine of up to 100 basic calculation units, or community service of up to 360 hours, or corrective labor for up to 3 years, or restriction of freedom for up to 5 years, or imprisonment for up to 8 years.
Bribery of an official of a non-governmental organization - a fine of up to 300 basic calculation units (90 million Uzbek Soums), or corrective labor for up to 3 years, or restraint of freedom for up to 5 years, or imprisonment up to 8 years;
Bribery of an employee of a non-governmental organization - a fine of up to 30 basic calculation units (9 million Uzbek Soums), or community service for up to 240 hours, or corrective labor for up to 1 year.
Commercial Bribery - a fine of up to 300 basic calculation units (90 million Uzbek Soums), or community service for up to 300 hours, or corrective labor for up to 3 years, or restriction of freedom for up to 5 years, or imprisonment for up to 5 years.
According to the Criminal Code, a person who commits a crime on the territory of Uzbekistan shall be held liable in accordance with the Code. "Committed in the territory of Uzbekistan" means that an act was:
Under the Code of Administrative Liability, foreign nationals on the territory of Uzbekistan are subject to administrative liability on general grounds.
In accordance with the Law on Civil Service, in case of conflict of interests, a civil servant is required to immediately inform in writing his supervisor or upper-level public body, which, in turn, is required to promptly take measures to resolve it.
According to the Model Code of Ethics, civil servants should not allow personal interests that cause or may cause a conflict of interests in the performance of their duties or functions; if a conflict of interests arises, a civil servant should immediately inform their supervisor, who, in turn, should promptly take measures to prevent or resolve the conflict.
The pending Draft Law on Prevention of Conflict of Interests provides that officials of public bodies and organizations are obliged to inform their direct supervisor or a special division about a conflict of interest prior to making a corresponding decision and to report conflicts of interest in relation to other officials of that body (organization). In addition, according to the draft law, officials (employees) and their relatives must submit an annual declaration of interests.
The draft law also provides a number of prohibitions aimed at preventing conflicts of interests, i.e. :
Under the Law on Civil Service, civil servants are prohibited from accepting any gifts from natural or legal persons for the performance or non-performance of their official duties in the interest of such persons. The exception to this provision are gifts received for special merits based on a relevant decision of a public body, as well as gifts received as a result of achievements in competitions, awards in connection with public holidays, important dates, and other official events, as well as gifts the value of which does not exceed 5 basic calculation units (1.5 million Uzbek Soums), and gifts received during business trips and in connection with international and other official events. In addition, employees are prohibited from receiving any remuneration, benefits, or gifts from individuals and legal entities for the performance or non-performance of their official duties in the interests of those individuals or legal entities.
The Model Code of Ethics provides that civil servants cannot receive remuneration, benefits, or gifts for the performance or non-performance of their official duties in the interests of natural and legal persons and should not accept valuable gifts from managers and employees of entities and organizations related to the performance of their official duties as well as other public officials, even outside the working hours.
According to the Civil Service Act, civil servants are prohibited from, inter alia:
The Model Code of Ethics provides that civil servants may not engage in entrepreneurial or other outside paid activity (apart from pedagogical, scientific, and creative activities) except in cases stipulated by law.
According to the Draft Law on Prevention of Conflict of Interests, civil servants (employees) are prohibited to:
However, the Draft Law on Prevention of Conflict of Interests provides that public servants (employees) may, within 2 years after leaving their position, be employed by public entities, institutions, organizations, or their units over which they exercised direct or indirect control while holding their position, only based on the conclusion of officials performing anti-corruption control functions in these organizations.
Legal entities may be held criminally liable.
The provisions of the Criminal Code shall apply to any person whether a national or foreigner who has committed one of the crimes specified in the Code on the territory of Ethiopia. The definition of "person" is not provided, but it can be assumed that, along the lines of the Corruption Crimes Proclamation, it includes both natural and legal persons.
The Corruption Crimes Proclamation defines "person" to mean natural or legal person but does not specify whether it applies to foreign companies.
Legislation provides for direct liability of legal persons for corruption offenses.
Both the Criminal Code and the Corruption Crimes Proclamation provide for the following corruption offenses:
The "advantage" means:
a) any gift, loan, fee, reward or commission consisting of money, or of any valuable security or of other property or interest in property;
b) any office, employment or contract;
c) any payment, remission, discharge or liquidation of any loan, obligation or other liability, whether in whole or in part;
d) any service or favour, including protection from any penalty or disability, incurred or apprehended or from any action of an administrative, civil or criminal nature, whether or not already instituted;
e) any release or waiver of a right or obligation;
f) any other advantage or service other than those listed above and not assessable in terms of money;
g) providing any of the benefits listed above, or facilitating or promising to provide them.
Bribery in the private sector is not punishable by law.
Under the Criminal Code, the penalty for corruption offenses committed by a legal entity is a fine ranging from 10,000 to 500,000 Ethiopian Birr, depending on the nature and gravity of the offense. In addition to the fine, the court may order that the guilty organization be permanently or temporarily barred from any contract or transaction with the State.
According to the Corruption Crimes Proclamation, regardless of the provisions of the Criminal Code, without prejudice to individual responsibility of the officials or employees, a juridical person other than administrative authorities involved in crimes of corruption shall be punishable with a fine, the amount of which, depending on the nature and the gravity of the offense, ranges from 20,000 to 80,000 Birr for each year of penalty for respective crimes punishable with imprisonment. Similarly to the Criminal Code, it is specified that the court may, in addition to the punishment, give an order depriving the culprit, permanently or temporarily, of its right to take part in any trade or transaction with public office, public enterprise or public organization.
Article 406 of the Criminal Code specifies that a participant in a corruption offense who, before bringing the case to court, provides important information about the crime committed and the role of its participants may be exempted from prosecution by the competent authority. The criteria for assessing the "importance" of the relevant information are defined in the Code of Criminal Procedure.
Similar provisions are provided for in the Corruption Crimes Proclamation.
Both the Criminal Code and the Corruption Crimes Proclamation provide for the following corruption offenses:
The "advantage" means:
a) any gift, loan, fee, reward or commission consisting of money, or of any valuable security or of other property or interest in property;
b) any office, employment or contract;
c) any payment, remission, discharge or liquidation of any loan, obligation or other liability, whether in whole or in part;
d) any service or favour, including protection from any penalty or disability, incurred or apprehended or from any action of an administrative, civil or criminal nature, whether or not already instituted;
e) any release or waiver of a right or obligation;
f) any other advantage or service other than those listed above and not assessable in terms of money;
g) providing any of the benefits listed above, or facilitating or promising to provide them.
Bribery in the private sector is not punishable by law.
Individuals are liable to imprisonment for a term of up to 15 years, depending on the nature and gravity of the offense, and a fine of up to 50,000 Ethiopian Birr.
The provisions of the Criminal Code shall apply to any person whether a national or foreigner who has committed one of the crimes specified in the Code on the territory of Ethiopia.
The Ordinance on Disclosure and Regulation of Assets stipulates that officials may use their official duties only in the public interest and may not derive personal benefit from non-public information that they become aware of in the course of their official duties.
When a situation arises that may lead to a conflict between the official's official duties and his or her personal interests or the personal interests of his or her close relative, the official shall:
In the event of a conflict between the official's official duties and his/her personal interests or the personal interests of his/her close relative, the official shall publicly admit his/her guilt and ask for an apology or resign from his/her position on his/her own initiative or at the request of the management.
The term "close relative" for the purposes of the Ordinance means ascendants, descendants, brothers, sisters and other persons related to the official by blood or marriage up to the third degree.
Government agencies may adopt their own codes of conduct that prohibit officials from pursuing personal interests using their official powers or any information obtained in the course of their official duties.
A draft Ordinance on the Prevention of Conflict of Interest was prepared in 2022, but has not yet been adopted.
The Criminal Code includes the concept of "gift" as part of corruption offences.
The Proclamation on Disclosure and Registration of Assets prohibits officials from accepting gifts, hospitality or sponsored travel that may compromise their decision-making authority or involve a conflict of interest, unless refusal to accept the gift, hospitality or sponsored travel could jeopardize the working relationship - in which case the gift must be given to the appropriate government agency or government-owned enterprise or the accepted hospitality or sponsored travel must be reported to the Federal Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission or the appropriate ethics office of the agency (organization).
Under the Proclamation on Federal Civil Servants, employees are prohibited from soliciting or accepting gifts or valuables as consideration for actions he or she performs or is expected to perform as a government employee.
Federal government employees are prohibited from engaging in other activities that jeopardize service in a government agency or otherwise conflict with duties or are incompatible with the status of a government employee.
Under the Proclamation on Disclosure and Registration of Assets, any appointee, elected person or public servant may not receive any work-related benefits from persons whom he or she previously controlled [by virtue of the position held] for a period of 2 years after leaving office.
Liability for offenses provided by the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act may be imposed on individuals and legal entities.
Any act alleged to constitute an offense under the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act which is committed outside the Republic of South Africa shall, regardless of whether or not the act constitutes an offense or not at the place of its commission, be deemed to have been committed also in the Republic if that -
There are no particular regulations concerning liability of legal persons.
Any person who directly or indirectly gives or agrees or offers to give to any other person any gratification for the benefit of that other person or for the benefit of another person in order to act personally or by influencing another person so to act in a manner -
is guilty of the offense of corruption.
Similar actions committed against certain categories of persons (public officers, foreign public officers, judicial officers, etc.) are highlighted as separate corpus delicti of bribery.
Offering of unauthorized gratification to party to an employment relationship (Article 10) is a situation where any person who, directly or indirectly, gives or agrees or offers to give to any person who is a party to an employment relationship any unauthorized gratification, whether for the benefit of that party or for the benefit of another person in respect of that party doing any act in relation to the exercise, carrying out, or performance of that party's powers, duties, or functions within the scope of that party's employment relationship.
In addition, there are separate corpus delicti of corruption crimes in various areas (public procurement, sporting events, gambling, etc.).
There are also such crimes as:
Fines, the amount of which is not limited. In addition to any fine, the court may impose a fine equal to five times the value of the gratification involved in the offense.
Perpetrators of corruption crimes may be put on a special Register, which means a prohibition on doing business with public bodies and organizations.
There is no statutory procedure for holding legal persons liable.
Any person who directly or indirectly gives or agrees or offers to give to any other person any gratification for the benefit of that other person or for the benefit of another person in order to act personally or by influencing another person so to act in a manner -
is guilty of the offense of corruption.
Similar actions committed against certain categories of persons (public officers, foreign public officers, judicial officers, etc.) are highlighted as separate corpus delicti of bribery.
Offering of unauthorized gratification to party to an employment relationship (Article 10) is a situation where any person who, directly or indirectly, gives or agrees or offers to give to any person who is a party to an employment relationship any unauthorized gratification, whether for the benefit of that party or for the benefit of another person in respect of that party doing any act in relation to the exercise, carrying out, or performance of that party's powers, duties, or functions within the scope of that party's employment relationship.
In addition, there are separate corpus delicti of corruption crimes in various areas (public procurement, sporting events, gambling, etc.).
There are also such crimes as:
For crimes of corruption:
The same penalties may be imposed in case of attempting, conspiring with any other person, or aiding, abetting, inducing, inciting, instigating, instructing, commanding, counseling or procuring another person to commit an offense. In addition to any fine, the court may impose a fine equal to five times the value of the gratification involved in the offense.
Knowing that property or any part of any gratification is the subject of an offense, directly or indirectly, whether on behalf of himself/herself or on behalf of any other pers, entering into or causing to be entered into any dealing in relation to such property, or using or causing to be used, or holding, receiving, or concealing such property or any part thereof, is punishable for individuals by a fine or imprisonment of up to 10 years in the case of a sentence to be imposed by a High Court or 3 years in the case of a sentence to be imposed by a magistrate's court.
Those guilty of committing corruption offenses related to contracting and public procurement can be placed on a special Register, which means a ban on doing business with government agencies and organizations.
Any act alleged to constitute an offense under the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act which is committed outside the Republic of South Africa shall, regardless of whether or not the act constitutes an offense or not at the place of its commission, be deemed to have been committed also in the Republic if that -
The Public Service Regulations require an employee to recuse herself or himself from any official action or decisionmaking process which may result in improper personal gain, and this shall immediately be properly declared by the employee.
In addition, employees are required to annually disclose particulars of all his/her interests.
According to the Executive Members’ Ethics Act, Cabinet members, Deputy Ministers, and members of the Executive Council are prohibited from exposing themselves to any situation involving the risk of a conflict between their official responsibilities and their private interests.
In addition, these senior officials are required to disclose all their financial interests when assuming office and any financial interests acquired after their assumption of office, including 5 any gifts, sponsored foreign travel, pensions, hospitality and other benefits of a material nature received by them or by such persons having a family or other relationship with them as may be determined in the code of ethics.
In accordance with the Public Service Regulations, employees are prohibited:
According to the Public Service Act, no officer or employee shall perform or engage himself/herself to perform remunerative work outside his/her employment in the public service, without permission granted on the recommendation of the Commission by the relevant executing authority or an officer authorized by such authority.
Under the Public Service Regulations, an employee shall not conduct business with any organ of state or be a director of a public or private company conducting business with an organ of state, unless such employee is in an official capacity a director of a company listed in schedule 2 and 3 of the Public Finance Management Act
According to the Executive Members’ Ethics Act, Cabinet members, Deputy Ministers, and members of the Executive Council are prohibited from undertaking any other paid work.
The database is aimed primarily at companies operating in international markets. It provides structured information about national legal provisions on the liability of foreign companies and their employees for corruption offenses, the requirements for companies to adopt anti-corruption measures, as well as the prohibitions and restrictions covering public officials who can interact with such companies.