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Bribery in international business

OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions

 

The OECD Anti-Bribery Convention establishes legally binding standards to criminalise bribery of foreign public officials in international business transactions and provides for a host of related measures that make this effective. It is the first and only international anti-corruption instrument focused on the ‘supply side’ of the bribery transaction.

Text of the Convention

This booklet contains the official text and commentaries of the 1997 Convention, the 2009 Recommendation of the Council for Further Combating Bribery, the 2009 Recommendation on the Tax Deductibility of Bribes to Foreign Public Officials and other related instruments:

English | French 

 

Unofficial translations which do not include the May 2011 updates to the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises section on combating bribery, bribe solicitation and extortion are also available:

Arabic | Chinese | Spanish

 

The 2021 Anti-Bribery Recommendation

Parties to the Anti-Bribery Convention have agreed to put in place new measures that will reinforce their efforts to prevent, detect and investigate foreign bribery with the adoption of the OECD Recommendation for Further Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions.

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Other related instruments

OECD Recommendation on Tax Measures for Further Combating Bribery 

OECD Recommendation on Bribery and Officially Supported Export Credits

OECD Recommendation for Development Co-operation Actors on Managing Risks of Corruption

 

 

Further reading

2008 Review of OECD Anti-Bribery Instruments

 

Tax treatment of bribes

 

Bribery and corruption awareness handbook for tax examiners and tax auditors

 

KEY DATES & FIGURES


17 December 1997: Signature of the Convention

15 February 1999: Entry into force of the Convention

44 Signatories: All OECD countries and 6 non-OECD countries

Status of ratification


SIGNATORY COUNTRIES 


The 38 OECD countries and 6 non-OECD countries - Argentina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Peru, Russia and South Africa - have adopted this Convention.

 

IMPLEMENTATION & ENFORCEMENT 

The Convention itself establishes an open-ended, peer-driven monitoring mechanism to ensure the thorough implementation of the international obligations that countries have taken on under the Convention. This monitoring is carried out by the OECD Working Group on Bribery. The country monitoring reports contain recommendations formed from rigorous examinations of each country.

Country monitoring reports

Monitoring process‌

Data on enforcement

20th Anniversary of the signature of the Convention

Timeline of 20 years of implementation

 

OECD WORKING GROUP ON BRIBERY
The OECD Working Group on Bribery in International Business Transactions is responsible for monitoring the implementation and enforcement of the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention, the 2009 Recommendation and related instruments. The Working Group is made up of representatives from the States Parties to the Convention and meets regularly.

Learn more about the Working Group

 

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