Title 18, Crimes and Criminal ProcedureRelease 119-110
§506 Seals of Departments or Agencies
Title 18 › PART I — CRIMES › CHAPTER 25 — COUNTERFEITING AND FORGERY › § 506
Summary
It is a crime to make, change, or copy a U.S. department or agency seal and to knowingly put such a fake seal on any paper or document, or to buy, sell, give away, move, or import one if you intend to use it to commit fraud. Conviction can bring a fine, up to 5 years in prison, or both. If the fake seal is used to help a noncitizen apply for or get a federal benefit, the punishments are harsher: the maximum fine is doubled and the maximum prison term is tripled. "Federal benefit" covers things like grants, contracts, loans, licenses, and payments or assistance such as retirement, welfare, Social Security, health care (including emergency treatment), disability, veterans, housing, education, food aid, and unemployment. Each separate forgery is a separate crime.
Full Legal Text
Title 18, §506
Crimes and Criminal Procedure, Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)Whoever—
(1)falsely makes, forges, counterfeits, mutilates, or alters the seal of any department or agency of the United States, or any facsimile thereof;
(2)knowingly uses, affixes, or impresses any such fraudulently made, forged, counterfeited, mutilated, or altered seal or facsimile thereof to or upon any certificate, instrument, commission, document, or paper of any description; or
(3)with fraudulent intent, possesses, sells, offers for sale, furnishes, offers to furnish, gives away, offers to give away, transports, offers to transport, imports, or offers to import any such seal or facsimile thereof, knowing the same to have been so falsely made, forged, counterfeited, mutilated, or altered,
shall be fined under this title, or imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both.
(b)Notwithstanding subsection (a) or any other provision of law, if a forged, counterfeited, mutilated, or altered seal of a department or agency of the United States, or any facsimile thereof, is—
(1)so forged, counterfeited, mutilated, or altered;
(2)used, affixed, or impressed to or upon any certificate, instrument, commission, document, or paper of any description; or
(3)with fraudulent intent, possessed, sold, offered for sale, furnished, offered to furnish, given away, offered to give away, transported, offered to transport, imported, or offered to import,
with the intent or effect of facilitating an alien’s application for, or receipt of, a Federal benefit to which the alien is not entitled, the penalties which may be imposed for each offense under subsection (a) shall be two times the maximum fine, and 3 times the maximum term of imprisonment, or both, that would otherwise be imposed for an offense under subsection (a).
(c)For purposes of this section—
(1)the term “Federal benefit” means—
(A)the issuance of any grant, contract, loan, professional license, or commercial license provided by any agency of the United States or by appropriated funds of the United States; and
(B)any retirement, welfare, Social Security, health (including treatment of an emergency medical condition in accordance with section 1903(v) of the Social Security Act (19 U.S.C. 1396b(v))), disability, veterans, public housing, education, supplemental nutrition assistance program benefits, or unemployment benefit, or any similar benefit for which payments or assistance are provided by an agency of the United States or by appropriated funds of the United States; and
(2)each instance of forgery, counterfeiting, mutilation, or alteration shall constitute a separate offense under this section.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Historical and Revision Notes
Based on title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., § 131 (June 15, 1917, ch. 30, title X, § 2, 40 Stat. 228). Reference to persons causing, procuring, aiding or assisting was omitted as unnecessary as such persons are made principals by section 2 of this title. In view of definitions of department and agency in section 6 of this title, words “department or agency” in first paragraph were substituted for “executive department, or any bureau, commission, or office”. Provision for 10 years’ imprisonment was reduced to 5 years to conform to punishment provision in section 505 of this title, covering an offense of like gravity. Minor changes in phraseology were also made.
Editorial Notes
Codification Pub. L. 110–234 and Pub. L. 110–246 made identical
Amendments
to this section. The
Amendments
by Pub. L. 110–234 were repealed by section 4(a) of Pub. L. 110–246.
Amendments
2008—Subsec. (c)(1)(B). Pub. L. 110–246, § 4002(b)(1)(E), (2)(M), substituted “supplemental nutrition assistance program benefits” for “food stamps”. 1996—Pub. L. 104–208 reenacted section catchline without change and amended text generally. Prior to amendment, text read as follows: “Whoever falsely makes, forges, counterfeits, mutilates, or alters the seal of any department or agency of the United States; or “Whoever knowingly uses, affixes, or impresses any such fraudulently made, forged, counterfeited, mutilated, or altered seal to or upon any certificate, instrument, commission, document, or paper, of any description; or “Whoever, with fraudulent intent, possesses any such seal, knowing the same to have been so falsely made, forged, counterfeited, mutilated, or altered— “Shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.” 1994—Pub. L. 103–322 substituted “fined under this title” for “fined not more than $5,000”.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
of 2008 AmendmentAmendment of this section and repeal of Pub. L. 110–234 by Pub. L. 110–246 effective May 22, 2008, the date of enactment of Pub. L. 110–234, except as otherwise provided, see section 4 of Pub. L. 110–246, set out as an
Effective Date
note under section 8701 of Title 7, Agriculture. Amendment by section 4002(b)(1)(E), (2)(M) of Pub. L. 110–246 effective Oct. 1, 2008, see section 4407 of Pub. L. 110–246, set out as a note under section 1161 of Title 2, The Congress.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
18 U.S.C. § 506
Title 18, Crimes and Criminal Procedure
Last Updated
Sep 23, 2026
Release point: 119-110