Title 22, Foreign Relations and IntercourseRelease 119-110

§9741 Recovering Assets Stolen From the Venezuelan People

Title 22 › CHAPTER 104 — VENEZUELA ASSISTANCE › SUBCHAPTER V — SUPPORTING THE RECONSTRUCTION OF VENEZUELA › § 9741

Last updated Sep 22, 2026|Official source

Summary

The President must lead an international effort, through the Secretary of State and with the Treasury Secretary's input, to recover assets taken from the people and institutions of Venezuela. That effort must work with other governments to share financial investigation information, freeze the assets found, and help those countries set up the legal tools and technical help needed to seize stolen assets. It must also run special financial investigations to find and track assets taken by theft, corruption, money laundering, or other illegal means. Within 180 days after December 20, 2019, the President must send a strategy to Congress. The plan must consider whether the United States or others should create a managed fund to hold the identified assets for return to a future democratic Venezuelan government, and must include recommendations for any U.S. laws or rules needed to create and run that fund.

Full Legal Text

Title 22, §9741

Foreign Relations and Intercourse, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Recovering assets

The President, acting through the Secretary of State and in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, shall advance a coordinated international effort—

(1)to work with foreign governments—

(A)to share financial investigations intelligence, as appropriate;

(B)to block the assets identified pursuant to paragraph (2); and

(C)to provide technical assistance to help governments establish the necessary legal framework to carry out asset forfeitures; and

(2)to carry out special financial investigations to identify and track assets taken from the people and institutions of Venezuela through theft, corruption, money laundering, or other illicit means.

(b)Strategy requirement

(1)In general

Not later than 180 days after December 20, 2019, the President, acting through the Secretary of State and in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, shall submit a strategy for carrying out the activities described in subsection (a) to Congress.

(2)Additional elements

The strategy required under paragraph (1) shall—

(A)assess whether the United States or another member of the international community should establish a managed fund to hold the assets identified pursuant to subsection (a)(2) that could be returned to a future democratic government in Venezuela; and

(B)include such recommendations as the President and the Secretary of State consider appropriate for legislative or administrative action in the United States that would be needed to establish and manage the fund described in subparagraph (A).

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

22 U.S.C. § 9741

Title 22, Foreign Relations and Intercourse

Last Updated

Sep 22, 2026

Release point: 119-110