OECD Anti-Bribery Convention

The Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions was adopted by the OECD on 21 November 1997 and entered into force on 15 February 1999. It is the first and still the principal international anti-corruption instrument that focuses specifically on the supply side of transnational bribery — the companies and individuals who pay bribes rather than the officials who receive them.

Parties commit to:

• Make it a criminal offence under domestic law to offer, promise, or give an undue advantage to a foreign public official to obtain or retain business.
• Impose effective, proportionate, and dissuasive sanctions on natural and legal persons, including monetary penalties comparable to those for domestic bribery.
• Establish jurisdiction over offences committed in their territory and, where consistent with domestic law, over acts committed abroad by their nationals.
• Provide mutual legal assistance and not refuse extradition on grounds of bank secrecy.
• Outlaw the tax deductibility of bribes (reinforced by a 1996 OECD Council Recommendation and the 2009 Recommendation).

The Convention is enforced through the OECD Working Group on Bribery (WGB), which conducts rigorous peer review in successive phases (Phase 1 on legislation, Phase 2 on implementation, Phase 3 and Phase 4 on enforcement and cross-cutting issues). Country reports are public and have prompted significant legislative changes — for example reforms in the United Kingdom leading to the Bribery Act 2010, and amendments to Germany's and Japan's criminal codes.

Membership includes all OECD states plus several non-members (such as Argentina, Brazil, Bulgaria, and South Africa). The United States, whose Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 (FCPA) inspired the treaty, remains the most active enforcer, though France, Germany, and the UK have produced major cases. The Convention is complemented by the 2021 Anti-Bribery Recommendation, which updates standards on whistleblower protection, non-trial resolutions, and corporate liability.