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CITE

    18 USC Sec. 951                                             01/05/2009

EXPCITE

    TITLE 18 - CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
    PART I - CRIMES
    CHAPTER 45 - FOREIGN RELATIONS

HEAD

    Sec. 951. Agents of foreign governments

STATUTE

      (a) Whoever, other than a diplomatic or consular officer or
    attacheé, acts in the United States as an agent of a foreign
    government without prior notification to the Attorney General if
    required in subsection (b), shall be fined under this title or
    imprisoned not more than ten years, or both.
      (b) The Attorney General shall promulgate rules and regulations
    establishing requirements for notification.
      (c) The Attorney General shall, upon receipt, promptly transmit
    one copy of each notification statement filed under this section to
    the Secretary of State for such comment and use as the Secretary of
    State may determine to be appropriate from the point of view of the
    foreign relations of the United States. Failure of the Attorney
    General to do so shall not be a bar to prosecution under this
    section.
      (d) For purposes of this section, the term "agent of a foreign
    government" means an individual who agrees to operate within the
    United States subject to the direction or control of a foreign
    government or official, except that such term does not include -
        (1) a duly accredited diplomatic or consular officer of a
      foreign government, who is so recognized by the Department of
      State;
        (2) any officially and publicly acknowledged and sponsored
      official or representative of a foreign government;
        (3) any officially and publicly acknowledged and sponsored
      member of the staff of, or employee of, an officer, official, or
      representative described in paragraph (1) or (2), who is not a
      United States citizen; or
        (4) any person engaged in a legal commercial transaction.
      (e) Notwithstanding paragraph (d)(4), any person engaged in a
    legal commercial transaction shall be considered to be an agent of
    a foreign government for purposes of this section if -
        (1) such person agrees to operate within the United States
      subject to the direction or control of a foreign government or
      official; and
        (2) such person -
          (A) is an agent of Cuba or any other country that the
        President determines (and so reports to the Congress) poses a
        threat to the national security interest of the United States
        for purposes of this section, unless the Attorney General,
        after consultation with the Secretary of State, determines and
        so reports to the Congress that the national security or
        foreign policy interests of the United States require that the
        provisions of this section do not apply in specific
        circumstances to agents of such country; or
          (B) has been convicted of, or has entered a plea of nolo
        contendere with respect to, any offense under section 792
        through 799, 831, or 2381 of this title or under section 11 of
        the Export Administration Act of 1979, except that the
        provisions of this subsection shall not apply to a person
        described in this clause for a period of more than five years
        beginning on the date of the conviction or the date of entry of
        the plea of nolo contendere, as the case may be.

SOURCE

    (June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 743; Pub. L. 97-462, Sec. 6, Jan.
    12, 1983, 96 Stat. 2530; Pub. L. 98-473, title II, Sec. 1209, Oct.
    12, 1984, 98 Stat. 2164; Pub. L. 99-569, title VII, Sec. 703, Oct.
    27, 1986, 100 Stat. 3205; Pub. L. 103-199, title II, Sec. 202, Dec.
    17, 1993, 107 Stat. 2321; Pub. L. 103-322, title XXXIII, Sec.
    330016(1)(R), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2148.)

HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES

      Based on section 601 of title 22, U.S.C., 1940 ed., Foreign
    Relations and Intercourse (June 15, 1917, ch. 30, title VIII, Sec.
    3, 40 Stat. 226; Mar. 28, 1940, ch. 72, Sec. 6, 54 Stat. 80).
      Mandatory punishment provision was rephrased in the alternative.
      Minor changes in phraseology were made.

REFERENCES IN TEXT

      Section 11 of the Export Administration Act of 1979, referred to
    in subsec. (e)(2)(B), is classified to section 2410 of Title 50,
    Appendix, War and National Defense.

AMENDMENTS

      1994 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103-322 substituted "fined under this
    title" for "fined not more than $75,000".
      1993 - Subsec. (e)(2)(A). Pub. L. 103-199 substituted "Cuba or
    any other country that the President determines (and so reports to
    the Congress) poses a threat to the national security interest of
    the United States for purposes of this section" for "the Soviet
    Union, the German Democratic Republic, Hungary, Czechoslovakia,
    Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, or Cuba".
      1986 - Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 99-569 added subsec. (e).
      1984 - Pub. L. 98-473 designated existing provisions as subsec.
    (a), substituted "Attorney General if required in subsection (b)"
    for "Secretary of State", and added subsecs. (b) to (d).
      1983 - Pub. L. 97-462 increased limitation on fines to $75,000
    from $5,000.
                     EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1983 AMENDMENT
      Amendment by Pub. L. 97-462 effective 45 days after Jan. 12,
    1983, see section 4 of Pub. L. 97-462, set out as a note under
    section 2071 of Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial Procedure.