Title 18, Crimes and Criminal ProcedureRelease 119-102

§3508 Custody and Return of Foreign Witnesses

Title 18 › PART II — CRIMINAL PROCEDURE › CHAPTER 223 — WITNESSES AND EVIDENCE › § 3508

Last updated Aug 21, 2026|Official source

Summary

Allows the Attorney General to ask that a person who is jailed, held before trial, or otherwise in custody in another country be brought to the United States for a criminal case to give testimony. The Attorney General can arrange the transfer, keep the person in custody here while they testify, and send them back to the foreign country when finished. If a treaty with the foreign country covers such transfers, its rules must be followed. If there is no treaty, the Attorney General can act only if the foreign country and the witness both agree. Return to the foreign country does not require extradition or immigration proceedings.

Full Legal Text

Title 18, §3508

Crimes and Criminal Procedure, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)When the testimony of a person who is serving a sentence, is in pretrial detention, or is otherwise being held in custody, in a foreign country, is needed in a State or Federal criminal proceeding, the Attorney General shall, when he deems it appropriate in the exercise of his discretion, have the authority to request the temporary transfer of that person to the United States for the purposes of giving such testimony, to transport such person to the United States in custody, to maintain the custody of such person while he is in the United States, and to return such person to the foreign country.

(b)Where the transfer to the United States of a person in custody for the purposes of giving testimony is provided for by treaty or convention, by this section, or both, that person shall be returned to the foreign country from which he is transferred. In no event shall the return of such person require any request for extradition or extradition proceedings, or proceedings under the immigration laws.

(c)Where there is a treaty or convention between the United States and the foreign country in which the witness is being held in custody which provides for the transfer, custody and return of such witnesses, the terms and conditions of that treaty shall apply. Where there is no such treaty or convention, the Attorney General may exercise the authority described in paragraph (a) if both the foreign country and the witness give their consent.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

18 U.S.C. § 3508

Title 18, Crimes and Criminal Procedure

Last Updated

Aug 21, 2026

Release point: 119-102