Title 42The Public Health and WelfareRelease 119-73

§2000e–1 Exemption

Title 42 › Chapter CHAPTER 21— - CIVIL RIGHTS › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER VI— - EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES › § 2000e–1

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Exempts certain employers and actions from the bans in sections 2000e–2 and 2000e–3. It does not cover an employer hiring noncitizens outside any State, or religious corporations, schools, or societies hiring people of a particular religion for work tied to their religious activities. It also lets employers, unions, employment agencies, or joint training or apprenticeship committees do things in a foreign workplace that would otherwise be illegal if following the U.S. rule would force them to break the foreign country’s law. If a U.S. employer controls a foreign corporation, wrongful acts by that corporation are assumed to be done by the employer. The bans do not apply to foreign operations of a foreign employer not controlled by an American. Control is judged by how operations are linked, shared management, who controls labor relations, and common ownership or financial control.

Full Legal Text

Title 42, §2000e–1

The Public Health and Welfare — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)This subchapter shall not apply to an employer with respect to the employment of aliens outside any State, or to a religious corporation, association, educational institution, or society with respect to the employment of individuals of a particular religion to perform work connected with the carrying on by such corporation, association, educational institution, or society of its activities.
(b)It shall not be unlawful under section 2000e–2 or 2000e–3 of this title for an employer (or a corporation controlled by an employer), labor organization, employment agency, or joint labor-management committee controlling apprenticeship or other training or retraining (including on-the-job training programs) to take any action otherwise prohibited by such section, with respect to an employee in a workplace in a foreign country if compliance with such section would cause such employer (or such corporation), such organization, such agency, or such committee to violate the law of the foreign country in which such workplace is located.
(c)(1)If an employer controls a corporation whose place of incorporation is a foreign country, any practice prohibited by section 2000e–2 or 2000e–3 of this title engaged in by such corporation shall be presumed to be engaged in by such employer.
(2)section 2000e–2 and 2000e–3 of this title shall not apply with respect to the foreign operations of an employer that is a foreign person not controlled by an American employer.
(3)For purposes of this subsection, the determination of whether an employer controls a corporation shall be based on—
(A)the interrelation of operations;
(B)the common management;
(C)the centralized control of labor relations; and
(D)the common ownership or financial control,

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

1991—Pub. L. 102–166 designated existing provisions as subsec. (a) and added subsecs. (b) and (c). 1972—Pub. L. 92–261 reenacted section catchline without change and amended text generally. Prior to amendment, text read as follows: “This subchapter shall not apply to an employer with respect to the employment of aliens outside any State, or to a religious corporation, association, or society with respect to the employment of individuals of a particular religion to perform work connected with the carrying on by such corporation, association, or society of its religious activities or to an educational institution with respect to the employment of individuals to perform work connected with the educational activities of such institution.”

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1991 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 102–166 inapplicable to conduct occurring before Nov. 21, 1991, see section 109(c) of Pub. L. 102–166, set out as a note under section 2000e of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

42 U.S.C. § 2000e–1

Title 42The Public Health and Welfare

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73