Title 18Crimes and Criminal ProcedureRelease 119-73

§3273 Offenses committed by certain United States personnel stationed in Canada in furtherance of border security initiatives

Title 18 › Part PART II— - CRIMINAL PROCEDURE › Chapter CHAPTER 212A— - EXTRATERRITORIAL JURISDICTION OVER CERTAIN OFFENSES › § 3273

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Makes it a crime for people sent to Canada by the Department of Homeland Security or the Department of Justice under a treaty, executive agreement, or bilateral memorandum to help with border security to do in Canada anything that would be a federal crime if done in the United States. If convicted, they face the same fines or jail time as the U.S. crime calls for. It covers three kinds of workers: (1) civilian employees, contractors (including subcontractors at any level), or employees of those contractors; (2) people who are in Canada because of that job; and (3) people who are not Canadian citizens or ordinary residents of Canada.

Full Legal Text

Title 18, §3273

Crimes and Criminal Procedure — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Whoever, while employed by the Department of Homeland Security or the Department of Justice and stationed or deployed in Canada pursuant to a treaty, executive agreement, or bilateral memorandum in furtherance of a border security initiative, engages in conduct (or conspires or attempts to engage in conduct) in Canada that would constitute an offense for which a person may be prosecuted in a court of the United States had the conduct been engaged in within the United States or within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States shall be fined or imprisoned, or both, as provided for that offense.
(b)In this section, the term “employed by the Department of Homeland Security or the Department of Justice” means—
(1)being employed as a civilian employee, a contractor (including a subcontractor at any tier), or an employee of a contractor (or a subcontractor at any tier) of the Department of Homeland Security or the Department of Justice;
(2)being present or residing in Canada in connection with such employment; and
(3)not being a national of or ordinarily resident in Canada.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Rule of

Construction

Pub. L. 114–316, § 2(c), Dec. 16, 2016, 130 Stat. 1594, provided that: “Nothing in this section [enacting this section] or the

Amendments

made by this section shall be construed to infringe upon or otherwise affect the exercise of prosecutorial discretion by the Department of Justice in implementing this section and the

Amendments

made by this section.”

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

18 U.S.C. § 3273

Title 18Crimes and Criminal Procedure

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73