On January 2, 2025, the Department of Justice published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
(“NPRM”) soliciting public comments on potential amendments to the Department’s regulations
regarding the Foreign Agents Registration Act (“FARA”). The regulatory amendments proposed
by the Department are significant, and they would take the statute in a substantially different
direction. The proposed changes would completely overhaul an exemption for
commercial activity by foreign corporations, which has existed in its current form for more than
two decades, and make other consequential changes, including changes to an exemption for
lawyers representing foreign interests.
In this alert, we detail the Department’s proposed revisions to the regulations and the
implications of these proposed changes for multinational corporations, law firms, nonprofits,
lobbying and consulting firms, public relations companies, and other organizations that may
engage in activity within the scope of the statute.