Bribery of public officials is a crime almost everywhere, but the laws that shape group compliance are those that reach conduct abroad and make companies liable for people acting for them. The UK Bribery Act and India's Prevention of Corruption Act make a company liable when an associated person bribes, unless it had adequate procedures; the US FCPA reaches US persons, issuers and conduct in the US, with enforcement priorities reset in 2025; Germany and France add foreign-official offences and, in France, mandatory programmes for large companies.
Failure-to-prevent liability: the UK and India
Under section 7 of the UK Bribery Act 2010, a commercial organisation commits an offence if a person associated with it bribes another to obtain or keep business or an advantage for it, unless it proves it had adequate procedures to prevent this. The offence reaches UK companies wherever they operate and any other organisation that carries on part of its business in the UK. Individuals face up to 10 years' imprisonment for bribery offences, including bribing a foreign official, and companies face unlimited fines.
India adopted the same model in 2018. A commercial organisation is punishable with a fine if a person associated with it bribes a public servant to obtain or retain business for it, and it has a defence if it had adequate procedures in line with guidelines prescribed by the central government. For a group operating in both countries, one well-documented programme can serve both defences, provided it covers agents, distributors and joint venture partners.1234
The US FCPA after 2025
The FCPA prohibits corruptly offering or paying anything of value to a foreign official to obtain or retain business. It applies to all US persons and certain foreign issuers, and since 1998 to foreign firms and persons who cause an act in furtherance within US territory. Companies listed in the US must also keep accurate books and records and adequate internal accounting controls.
Executive Order 14209 of February 2025 paused new FCPA cases pending review but did not repeal the law. Department of Justice guidelines of June 2025 now prioritise cases linked to cartels and transnational criminal organisations, conduct that harms US companies' competitiveness, threats to national security and serious misconduct such as large bribes, rather than low-value courtesies. The law and its exposure remain; the enforcement filter has changed.5678
Germany and France
German bribery offences extend to foreign public officials, employees of international organisations and members of foreign courts. France goes further on prevention: companies with at least 500 employees and turnover above EUR 100 million, and groups with a French parent of that size, must implement eight anti-corruption measures under Sapin II, including a code of conduct, an internal whistle-blowing system, a risk map, third-party assessments, accounting controls, training and a disciplinary regime.910
| Market | Law | Corporate exposure | Defence or programme rule | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | Bribery Act 2010 | Failure to prevent bribery by associated persons (s7); unlimited fine | Adequate procedures | legislation.gov.uk |
| India (central) | Prevention of Corruption Act 1988, s9 | Fine where associated person bribes a public servant | Adequate procedures under central guidelines | India Code |
| United States (federal) | FCPA | Anti-bribery for US persons, issuers and conduct in the US; accounting rules for issuers | DOJ priorities set in June 2025 | justice.gov |
| Germany | Criminal Code s335a | Bribery of foreign officials is an offence | Corporate fines via administrative offences law (see corporate liability module) | gesetze-im-internet.de |
| France | Sapin II, art. 17 | Mandatory programme for 500+ employees and over EUR 100 million turnover | Eight measures | portail-rse.beta.gouv.fr |
Decisions to make
- Does any group company carry on business in the UK, or is the parent UK-incorporated?1Section 7 then applies to bribery by associated persons anywhere in the world.
- Are any group companies US persons or US-listed issuers, or does conduct touch US territory?56This determines FCPA anti-bribery and accounting exposure.
- Does the French group or company reach 500 employees and EUR 100 million turnover?10Sapin II then requires eight specified measures, and the AFA can audit them.
- Which third parties act for the group with public officials: agents, distributors, customs brokers, joint venture partners?13UK and Indian corporate offences turn on associated persons, so due diligence and contract controls on them are the core of the defence.
Documents usually needed
- Bribery risk assessment by country, sector and type of third party
- Anti-bribery policy and code of conduct, approved by the board
- Third-party due diligence files and contract clauses (audit rights, termination, anti-bribery warranties)
- Gifts, hospitality and donations register
- Training records and annual compliance certifications
Common mistakes
- Reading the 2025 US enforcement pause as repeal of the FCPA
- Applying controls to employees but not to agents and distributors
- Treating facilitation payments as acceptable because they are small
- Copying a generic policy without a documented risk assessment, which weakens an adequate procedures defence
- Ignoring commercial (private-sector) bribery, which is also an offence in the UK and Germany
Questions businesses ask
Can a non-UK group be prosecuted under section 7 of the Bribery Act?
Yes, if it carries on business or part of a business in the UK. The bribery itself can occur anywhere.1
Has the US stopped enforcing the FCPA?
No. The February 2025 executive order paused new cases for review; June 2025 guidelines then set enforcement priorities. The statute remains in force.78
Does India have an adequate procedures defence like the UK?
Yes. Section 9 of the Prevention of Corruption Act gives a defence for adequate procedures in line with central government guidelines, although whether those guidelines have been prescribed was not confirmed.4
What this guide does not yet confirm
These points need checking with a qualified local professional before you rely on them.
- UAE and Saudi anti-bribery provisions were not researched in detail; the Saudi framework is recorded in the market guide from a secondary source.
- Whether India has prescribed the section 9 adequate procedures guidelines was not confirmed.
- The SEC's current FCPA enforcement approach was not checked.
- The UK Ministry of Justice guidance on adequate procedures could not yet be checked.
Sources and review status
Each statement is numbered to the source it was checked against. We use official sources where we can, and each statement says whether it was checked against an official or a secondary source. Sources last checked on 19 October 2026. None of it has been professionally reviewed yet: it is research checked against official and secondary sources by WONE Global, not legal or tax advice.
A commercial organisation commits an offence if a person associated with it bribes another person to obtain or retain business or a business advantage for it, unless it proves it had adequate procedures designed to prevent such conduct. Applies to UK-incorporated bodies and partnerships wherever they do business, and to any other body or partnership that carries on a business, or part of a business, in the UK.
Under the Bribery Act 2010 an individual convicted on indictment of bribing, being bribed or bribing a foreign public official faces up to 10 years' imprisonment, a fine or both, while a company faces a fine, and the section 7 offence of failing to prevent bribery is punishable by a fine. Sections 1, 2, 6 and 7, penalties in section 11. The Act creates a discrete offence of bribing a foreign public official (section 6) and gives UK courts jurisdiction over bribery abroad by UK nationals, ordinarily resident individuals and UK bodies.
Extra-territorial reach and the section 6 offence are taken from the Explanatory Notes summary.
A commercial organisation is punishable with a fine if any person associated with it gives or promises an undue advantage to a public servant intending to obtain or retain business, or an advantage in the conduct of business, for the organisation. Section 9(1), Prevention of Corruption Act 1988. An associated person is anyone who performs services for or on behalf of the organisation. Central law.
Text as on 21 May 2025; sections 7 to 10 as substituted by Act 16 of 2018 with effect from 26 July 2018.
It is a defence for a commercial organisation to prove that it had adequate procedures in place, in compliance with guidelines prescribed by the Central Government, to prevent persons associated with it from such conduct. Section 9, Prevention of Corruption Act 1988; section 9(5) requires the Central Government to prescribe the guidelines after consulting stakeholders. Central law.
Text as on 21 May 2025; sections 7 to 10 as substituted by Act 16 of 2018 with effect from 26 July 2018. Whether the section 9(5) guidelines have been prescribed was not confirmed.
The FCPA anti-bribery provisions make it unlawful to corruptly offer, pay, promise or authorise anything of value to a foreign official to obtain or retain business, and apply to all US persons and certain foreign issuers of securities and, since 1998, to foreign firms and persons who cause an act in furtherance of a corrupt payment within US territory. Federal. The Foreign Extortion Prevention Act of July 2024 separately makes it a crime for a foreign official to demand or accept such payments from issuers, domestic concerns and others, with up to 15 years' imprisonment.
The FCPA accounting provisions require companies whose securities are listed in the United States to keep books and records that accurately and fairly reflect their transactions and to maintain adequate internal accounting controls. Federal; applies to issuers. The Securities and Exchange Commission has civil enforcement authority under the FCPA.
Executive Order 14209, signed on 10 February 2025, directed the Attorney General to review FCPA enforcement policy for 180 days, not to start new FCPA investigations or enforcement actions without an individual exception, and to issue updated guidelines; it did not repeal the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Federal. The FCPA (15 USC 78dd-1 and following) remains law, and its statute of limitations is unaffected by the order.
The point about the statute of limitations is our reading; the order does not mention it.
Under Department of Justice guidelines of 9 June 2025, FCPA enforcement prioritises misconduct linked to cartels and transnational criminal organisations, conduct that harms identifiable US companies' ability to compete, threats to national security, and serious misconduct such as large bribes or sophisticated concealment, rather than routine or low-value business courtesies. Federal; Department of Justice criminal enforcement. The factors are not exhaustive. The guidelines do not bind the SEC's civil enforcement of the FCPA accounting provisions; this was not confirmed on the source.
SEC position not checked.
German bribery offences extend to bribery of foreign public officials, employees of international organisations and members of foreign and international courts. Applies §§ 331–334 StGB as specified in § 335a StGB.
Companies employing at least 500 people with turnover above EUR 100 million, and groups whose parent company has its registered office in France employing at least 500 people, must implement eight anti-corruption measures under article 17 of Sapin II. The eight measures are a code of conduct, an internal whistle-blowing system, a corruption risk map, procedures for assessing the value chain, internal or external accounting controls, training, a disciplinary regime and internal control and evaluation of the measures.
Official government portal; page undated. The AFA's own wording of the scope is in fr-risk-g01.
Questions on this topic
10 statements on anti-bribery laws
