Federal

Title 18 — Crimes and Criminal Procedure

1,399 sections, each with the official text and a plain-English explanation of what it means for you.

• § 1544 — Misuse of passport
• § 1545 — Safe conduct violation
• § 1546 — Fraud and misuse of visas, permits, and other documents
• § 1547 — Alternative imprisonment maximum for certain offenses
• § 155 — Fee agreements in cases under title 11 and receiverships
• § 156 — Knowing disregard of bankruptcy law or rule
• § 157 — Bankruptcy fraud
• § 158 — Designation of United States attorneys and agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation to address abusive reaffirmations of debt and materially fraudulent statements in bankruptcy schedules
• § 1581 — Peonage; obstructing enforcement
• § 1582 — Vessels for slave trade
• § 1583 — Enticement into slavery
• § 1584 — Sale into involuntary servitude
• § 1585 — Seizure, detention, transportation or sale of slaves
• § 1586 — Service on vessels in slave trade
• § 1587 — Possession of slaves aboard vessel
• § 1588 — Transportation of slaves from United States
• § 1589 — Forced labor
• § 1590 — Trafficking with respect to peonage, slavery, involuntary servitude, or forced labor
• § 1591 — Sex trafficking of children or by force, fraud, or coercion
• § 1592 — Unlawful conduct with respect to documents in furtherance of trafficking, peonage, slavery, involuntary servitude, or forced labor
• § 1593 — Mandatory restitution
• § 1593A — Benefitting financially from peonage, slavery, and trafficking in persons
• § 1594 — General provisions
• § 1595 — Civil remedy
• § 1595A — Civil injunctions
• § 1596 — Additional jurisdiction in certain trafficking offenses
• § 1597 — Unlawful conduct with respect to immigration documents
• § 16 — Crime of violence defined
• § 1621 — Perjury generally
• § 1622 — Subornation of perjury
• § 1623 — False declarations before grand jury or court
• § 1651 — Piracy under law of nations
• § 1652 — Citizens as pirates
• § 1653 — Aliens as pirates
• § 1654 — Arming or serving on privateers
• § 1655 — Assault on commander as piracy
• § 1656 — Conversion or surrender of vessel
• § 1657 — Corruption of seamen and confederating with pirates
• § 1658 — Plunder of distressed vessel
• § 1659 — Attack to plunder vessel
• § 1660 — Receipt of pirate property
• § 1661 — Robbery ashore
• § 1691 — Laws governing postal savings
• § 1692 — Foreign mail as United States mail
• § 1693 — Carriage of mail generally
• § 1694 — Carriage of matter out of mail over post routes
• § 1695 — Carriage of matter out of mail on vessels
• § 1696 — Private express for letters and packets
• § 1697 — Transportation of persons acting as private express
• § 1698 — Prompt delivery of mail from vessel
• § 1699 — Certification of delivery from vessel
• § 17 — Insanity defense
• § 1700 — Desertion of mails
• § 1701 — Obstruction of mails generally
• § 1702 — Obstruction of correspondence
• § 1703 — Delay or destruction of mail or newspapers
• § 1704 — Keys or locks stolen or reproduced
• § 1705 — Destruction of letter boxes or mail
• § 1706 — Injury to mail bags
• § 1707 — Theft of property used by Postal Service
• § 1708 — Theft or receipt of stolen mail matter gen­erally
• § 1709 — Theft of mail matter by officer or employee
• § 1710 — Theft of newspapers
• § 1711 — Misappropriation of postal funds
• § 1712 — Falsification of postal returns to increase compensation
• § 1713 — Issuance of money orders without payment
• § 1714 — Repealed. Pub. L. 101–647, title XII, § 1210(b) , Nov. 29, 1990 , 104 Stat. 4832 ]
• § 1715 — Firearms as nonmailable; regulations
• § 1716 — Injurious articles as nonmailable
• § 1716A — Nonmailable locksmithing devices and motor vehicle master keys
• § 1716B — Nonmailable plants
• § 1716C — Forged agricultural certifications
• § 1716D — Nonmailable injurious animals, plant pests, plants, and illegally taken fish, wildlife, and plants
• § 1716E — Tobacco products as nonmailable
• § 1717 — Letters and writings as nonmailable
• § 1718 — Repealed. Pub. L. 101–647, title XII, § 1210(c) , Nov. 29, 1990 , 104 Stat. 4832 ]
• § 1719 — Franking privilege
• § 1720 — Canceled stamps and envelopes
• § 1721 — Sale or pledge of stamps
• § 1722 — False evidence to secure second-class rate
• § 1723 — Avoidance of postage by using lower class matter
• § 1724 — Postage on mail delivered by foreign vessels
• § 1725 — Postage unpaid on deposited mail matter
• § 1726 — Postage collected unlawfully
• § 1727 — Repealed. Pub. L. 90–384, § 1(a) , July 5, 1968 , 82 Stat. 292 ]
• § 1728 — Weight of mail increased fraudulently
• § 1729 — Post office conducted without authority
• § 1730 — Uniforms of carriers
• § 1731 — Vehicles falsely labeled as carriers
• § 1732 — Approval of bond or sureties by postmaster
• § 1733 — Mailing periodical publications without prepayment of postage
• § 1734 — Editorials and other matter as “advertisements”
• § 1735 — Sexually oriented advertisements
• § 1736 — Restrictive use of information
• § 1737 — Manufacturer of sexually related mail matter
• § 1738 — Repealed. Pub. L. 106–578, § 4 , Dec. 28, 2000 , 114 Stat. 3076 ]
• § 175 — Prohibitions with respect to biological weapons
• § 1751 — Presidential and Presidential staff assassination, kidnapping, and assault; penalties
• § 1752 — Restricted building or grounds
• § 175a — Requests for military assistance to enforce prohibition in certain emergencies
• § 175b — Possession by restricted persons
• § 175c — Variola virus
• § 176 — Seizure, forfeiture, and destruction
• § 1761 — Transportation or importation
• § 1762 — Marking packages
• § 177 — Injunctions
• § 178 — Definitions
• § 1791 — Providing or possessing contraband in prison
• § 1792 — Mutiny and riot prohibited
• § 1793 — Trespass on Bureau of Prisons reservations and land
• § 18 — Organization defined
• § 1801 — Video voyeurism
• § 1821 — Repealed. Pub. L. 116–260, div. O, title X, § 1002(8) , Dec. 27, 2020 , 134 Stat. 2155 ]
• § 1831 — Economic espionage
• § 1832 — Theft of trade secrets
• § 1833 — Exceptions to prohibitions
• § 1834 — Criminal forfeiture
• § 1835 — Orders to preserve confidentiality
• § 1836 — Civil proceedings
• § 1837 — Applicability to conduct outside the United States
• § 1838 — Construction with other laws
• § 1839 — Definitions
• § 1841 — Protection of unborn children
• § 1851 — Coal depredations
• § 1852 — Timber removed or transported
• § 1853 — Trees cut or injured
• § 1854 — Trees boxed for pitch or turpentine
• § 1855 — Timber set afire
• § 1856 — Fires left unattended and unextinguished
• § 1857 — Fences destroyed; livestock entering
• § 1858 — Survey marks destroyed or removed
• § 1859 — Surveys interrupted
• § 1860 — Bids at land sales
• § 1861 — Deception of prospective purchasers
• § 1862 — Repealed. Pub. L. 95–200, § 3(c) , Nov. 23, 1977 , 91 Stat. 1428 ]
• § 1863 — Trespass on national forest lands
• § 1864 — Hazardous or injurious devices on Federal lands
• § 1865 — National Park Service
• § 1866 — Historic, archeologic, or prehistoric items and antiquities
• § 19 — Petty offense defined
• § 1901 — Collecting or disbursing officer trading in public property
• § 1902 — Disclosure of crop information and speculation thereon
• § 1903 — Speculation in stocks or commodities affecting crop insurance
• § 1904 — Repealed. Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330004(11) , Sept. 13, 1994 , 108 Stat. 2141 ]
• § 1905 — Disclosure of confidential information generally
• § 1906 — Disclosure of information from a bank examination report
• § 1907 — Disclosure of information by farm credit examiner
• § 1908 — Repealed. Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330004(11) , Sept. 13, 1994 , 108 Stat. 2141 ]
• § 1909 — Examiner performing other services
• § 1910 — Nepotism in appointment of receiver or trustee
• § 1911 — Receiver mismanaging property
• § 1912 — Unauthorized fees for inspection of vessels
• § 1913 — Lobbying with appropriated moneys
• § 1914 — Repealed. Pub. L. 87–849, § 2 , Oct. 23, 1962 , 76 Stat. 1126 ]
• § 1915 — Compromise of customs liabilities
• § 1916 — Unauthorized employment and disposition of lapsed appropriations
• § 1917 — Interference with civil service examinations
• § 1918 — Disloyalty and asserting the right to strike against the Government
• § 1919 — False statement to obtain unemployment compensation for Federal service
• § 1920 — False statement or fraud to obtain Federal employees’ compensation
• § 1921 — Repealed. Pub. L. 116–260, div. O, title X, § 1002(9) , Dec. 27, 2020 , 134 Stat. 2155 ]
• § 1922 — False or withheld report concerning Federal employees’ compensation
• § 1923 — Fraudulent receipt of payments of missing persons
• § 1924 — Unauthorized removal and retention of classified documents or material
• § 1951 — Interference with commerce by threats or violence
• § 1952 — Interstate and foreign travel or transportation in aid of racketeering enterprises
• § 1952A — Renumbered § 1958]
• § 1952B — Renumbered § 1959]
• § 1953 — Interstate transportation of wagering paraphernalia
• § 1954 — Offer, acceptance, or solicitation to influence operations of employee benefit plan
• § 1955 — Prohibition of illegal gambling businesses
• § 1956 — Laundering of monetary instruments
• § 1957 — Engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from specified unlawful activity
• § 1958 — Use of interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire
• § 1959 — Violent crimes in aid of racketeering activity
• § 1960 — Prohibition of unlicensed money transmitting businesses
• § 1961 — Definitions
• § 1962 — Prohibited activities
• § 1963 — Criminal penalties
• § 1964 — Civil remedies
• § 1965 — Venue and process
• § 1966 — Expedition of actions
• § 1967 — Evidence
• § 1968 — Civil investigative demand
• § 1991 — Entering train to commit crime
• § 1992 — Terrorist attacks and other violence against railroad carriers and against mass transportation systems on land, on water, or through the air
• § 1993 — Repealed. Pub. L. 109–177, title I, § 110(a) , Mar. 9, 2006 , 120 Stat. 205 ]
• § 2 — Principals
• § 20 — Financial institution defined
• § 201 — Bribery of public officials and witnesses
• § 202 — Definitions
• § 203 — Compensation to Members of Congress, officers, and others in matters affecting the Government
• § 2031, 2032 — Repealed. Pub. L. 99–646, § 87(c)(1) , Nov. 10, 1986 , 100 Stat. 3623 ; Pub. L. 99–654, § 3(a)(1) , Nov. 14, 1986 , 100 Stat. 3663 ]
• § 204 — Practice in United States Court of Federal Claims or the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit by Members of Congress
• § 205 — Activities of officers and employees in claims against and other matters affecting the Government
• § 206 — Exemption of retired officers of the uniformed services
• § 207 — Restrictions on former officers, employees, and elected officials of the executive and legislative branches
• § 2071 — Concealment, removal, or mutilation generally
• § 2072 — False crop reports
• § 2073 — False entries and reports of moneys or securities