Status of Forces Agreement

A Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) is a treaty between a sending state and a host state that governs the conditions under which foreign armed forces operate on the host's soil. SOFAs typically address criminal and civil jurisdiction over service members, taxation, customs duties, entry and exit procedures, use of facilities, claims for damages, and the wearing of uniforms and carriage of arms. They do not generally authorize the presence of forces or set basing terms — those are usually addressed in separate basing agreements, mutual defense treaties, or visiting forces agreements.

The most widely cited template is the NATO Status of Forces Agreement, signed in London on 19 June 1951, which establishes a system of concurrent jurisdiction: the sending state has primary jurisdiction over acts committed by personnel in the performance of official duty or against other members of the force, while the host state retains primary jurisdiction over other offenses. Each side may waive its primary right.

The United States is party to SOFAs or comparable arrangements with more than 100 countries. Prominent bilateral examples include the U.S.–Japan SOFA (1960, concluded alongside the revised Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security), the U.S.–Republic of Korea SOFA (1966), the U.S.–Philippines Visiting Forces Agreement (1998), and the U.S.–Iraq SOFA (signed 17 November 2008, expired end of 2011). The Australia–U.S. and Germany–U.S. force arrangements operate under the NATO SOFA supplemented by country-specific protocols.

SOFAs are politically sensitive. Jurisdictional clauses can become flashpoints after off-duty crimes — incidents in Okinawa, Seoul, and Manila have repeatedly prompted public demands for renegotiation. Critics argue SOFAs grant de facto impunity; defenders counter that reciprocal immunities are standard practice and that host states frequently exercise jurisdiction when they choose. SOFAs are distinct from Mission SOFAs the UN concludes for peacekeeping operations, which derive from the model agreement annexed to UN General Assembly document A/45/594 (1990).