republic-os/legal/us/code/title-18/chapter-79/section-1621.md

type, title, description, jurisdiction, corpus, kind, title_number, title_name, chapter_number, chapter_name, section, citation, status, release_point, release_date, source, source_url, source_identifier, source_file, source_hash, raw_snapshot_hash, text_hash, retrieved_at, confidence, tags

type	title	description	jurisdiction	corpus	kind	title_number	title_name	chapter_number	chapter_name	section	citation	status	release_point	release_date	source	source_url	source_identifier	source_file	source_hash	raw_snapshot_hash	text_hash	retrieved_at	confidence	tags
LegalText	18 U.S.C. § 1621	Perjury generally	us	united_states_code	code_section	18	CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE	79	PERJURY	1621	18 U.S.C. § 1621	current	119-100	2026-06-26	official	https://uscode.house.gov/download/releasepoints/us/pl/119/100/xml_usc18@119-100.zip	/us/usc/t18/s1621	data/legal/raw/us/code/title-18/usc18.xml	fca55e7bfc05de1fd181b134fe0c942128b905d637d5411bb6757cc619eb5276	1a1bbbbdb59e376ada4eb7ad1056fd68d396679ee7ab59f0561af15006122708	d17d4dbd2bd0b775e1d07dd705096c4701b8bd26169b6f0f3c3d52ec1224c907	2026-07-04	official	legal us-code

18 U.S.C. § 1621 - Perjury generally

Text

Whoever—

(1) having taken an oath before a competent tribunal, officer, or person, in any case in which a law of the United States authorizes an oath to be administered, that he will testify, declare, depose, or certify truly, or that any written testimony, declaration, deposition, or certificate by him subscribed, is true, willfully and contrary to such oath states or subscribes any material matter which he does not believe to be true; or

(2) in any declaration, certificate, verification, or statement under penalty of perjury as permitted under section 1746 of title 28, United States Code, willfully subscribes as true any material matter which he does not believe to be true;

is guilty of perjury and shall, except as otherwise expressly provided by law, be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both. This section is applicable whether the statement or subscription is made within or without the United States.

(June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 773; Pub. L. 88–619, § 1, Oct. 3, 1964, 78 Stat. 995; Pub. L. 94–550, § 2, Oct. 18, 1976, 90 Stat. 2534; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330016(1)(I), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2147.)

Notes

Historical and Revision NotesBased on title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., §§ 231, 629 (Mar. 4, 1909, ch. 321, § 125, 35 Stat. 1111; June 15, 1917, ch. 30, title XI, § 19, 40 Stat. 230). Words “except as otherwise expressly provided by law” were inserted to avoid conflict with perjury provisions in other titles where the punishment and application vary. More than 25 additional provisions are in the code. For construction and application of several such sections, see Behrle v. United States (App. D.C. 1938, 100 F. 2d 714), United States v. Hammer (D.C.N.Y., 1924, 299 F. 1011, affirmed, 6 F. 2d 786), Rosenthal v. United States (1918, 248 F. 684, 160 C.C.A. 584), cf. Epstein v. United States (1912, 196 F. 354, 116 C.C.A. 174, certiorari denied 32 S. Ct. 527, 223 U.S. 731, 56 L. ed. 634). Mandatory punishment provisions were rephrased in the alternative. Minor verbal changes were made.

Editorial Notes

Amendments1994—Pub. L. 103–322 substituted “fined under this title” for “fined not more than $2,000” in concluding provisions. 1976—Pub. L. 94–550 divided existing provisions into a single introductory word “Whoever”, par. (1), and closing provisions following par. (2), and added par. (2). 1964—Pub. L. 88–619 inserted at end “This section is applicable whether the statement or subscription is made within or without the United States.”