FIDE Handbook A. Administrative Subjects / FIDE Statutes (effective till March 1, 2020) /

CONTENTS

A. Administrative Subjects / FIDE Statutes (effective till March 1, 2020) /

FIDE Statutes (effective till March 1, 2020)

GENS UNA SUMUS

The moral strength of FIDE is manifested by the discipline of its members.
Statutes of the World Chess Federation - Fédération Internationale des Echecs - FIDE, founded 20 July, 1924, Paris, France.
These statutes were approved by the General Assembly on 13 September 2016 in Baku, Azerbaijan.

01. Status, principles and aims of FIDE

1.1.	The World Chess Federation or Fédération Internationale des Echecs, (referred to in the ensuing text as FIDE for short), is a non-governmental organisation founded on July 20, 1924 in Paris, France, recognised by its members and the International Olympic Committee as the international federation in the domain of chess, the supreme body responsible for the sportof chess and its Championships. FIDE has the sole rights to organise the World Chess Championships and the Chess Olympiads. FIDE unites national chess federations throughout the world and oversees all International competitions. The seat of FIDE is in Lausanne, Switzerland. FIDE is an association registered in the Commercial Register in accordance with the Swiss Civil Code.
1.2.	FIDE is concerned exclusively with chess activities. FIDE is democratically established and bases itself on the principles of equal rights of its members. FIDE is a non-profit making organisation. It rejects discriminatory treatment for national, political, racial, social or religious reasons or on account of gender. It observes strict neutrality in the internal affairs of the national chess federations. FIDE events (competitions, congresses, meetings) may be hosted only by Federations where free access is generally assured to representatives of all Federations. The General Assembly may take exceptions for reasons of state of war or severe violence between countries, only on a three quarter majority vote.
1.3.	Chess is one of the most ancient, intellectual and cultural games. It is a combination of sport, of scientific thinking and of elements of art. The purpose and aim of FIDE are the diffusion and development of chess among all nations of the world, as well as the raising of the level of chess culture and knowledge on a sporting, scientific, creative, educational and cultural basis. FIDE supports a close international cooperation of the chess devotees in all fields of chess activity, thereby also aiming to improve friendly harmony among all peoples of the world. The practice of the game of chess in all its ramifications is fully recognised as sport by the International Olympic Committee at the IOC session in Seoul, Korea in June 1999 and therefore any form of practice of the game of chess and any decision thereon by FIDE or any form of activity relating thereto either directly or indirectly falls within the definition of sport. The interpretation of these statutes must be in conformity with the Olympic Charter as envisaged by art 25 of the Olympic Charter.
1.4.	FIDE issues the rules of chess and the provisions pertaining to the organisation of the World Chess Championships and all other FIDE chess competitions. It awards the international chess titles. It decides on the regulations for all FIDE competitions and determines the conditions for the award of international titles. FIDE competitions are in general open to players of both sexes. A competition described as a women`s event is reserved for women players but women players are entitled to compete in events described as open events.
1.5	English and French are the official languages of FIDE. The official language of FIDE for business and announcements shall be English and all meetings, FIDE documents, rules and regulations will be in this language. English, French, Spanish and Russian are the official languages at the Congress. Qualified interpreters shall translate into these languages. Delegates may speak in their mother tongue if they ensure interpretation into one of the official Congress languages by a qualified interpreter.
1.6	The FIDE Motto is "Gens Una Sumus" (We are one family). The FIDE seal is a white Knight intersected by five white latitudinal lines on a black globe, with the word "FIDE" in black at the base of the Knight, and the FIDE motto in black below the globe. The FIDE flag is the FIDE Seal at the centre of a sky-blue background, on both sides of the flag, measuring 100 x 150 cm. or in proportion thereto.

02. Membership

A - Member Federations
2.1.	Members of FIDE are national chess federations which have principal authority over chess activities in their own countries and which have been admitted to FIDE as member-federations if they acknowledge the FIDE Statutes and develop activities not contrary to those statutes. Only one federation of each country can be affiliated to FIDE. In addition FIDE can grant the status of provisional member to chess federations, in accord with Article 2.7. For new members, the country of the federation (with the same boundaries) must be a country or territory that is a member of the International Olympic Committee.
2.2.	The admission of a national chess federation as a member is effected through an application (Download Questionnaire). This application is to be submitted to the Secretariat. The provisional admittance is decided upon by the Executive Board/Presidential Board. Final admittance as a member is pronounced by the General Assembly after examination of the preconditions for admittance by the Executive Board/Presidential Board. The application for admission must include all data, which will make evident that the statutory purpose and the previous activities of the applicant are in conformity with the FIDE Statutes. The application for admission shall be accompanied by the official questionnaire of FIDE approved by the General Assembly, completely filled out, together with a copy of the statutes of the federation, approved or recognised by the authorities of the country, if the country's law so requires. Decisions on the final admission of new federations shall be made before any other order of business, except elections. A new member can fully participate in all meetings of FIDE, including the right to vote, from the moment it is accepted for membership by the General Assembly.
2.3.	Each member federation has one vote in the General Assembly; they are entitled to make use of the right to vote; they are authorised to submit proposals to FIDE; they are entitled to participate in all FIDE events, according to the regulations; they are also authorised to scrutinise, through the Verification Commission, the financial management of FIDE.
2.4.	The members must acknowledge and observe the statutes, regulations, resolutions and decisions of FIDE. They are also obliged to pay the membership fees and the other FIDE contributions fixed by the General Assembly at the designated time. Moreover they are obliged to support FIDE actively in all chess activities. Each member federation is required to send to the Secretariat any changes in its address or officers within one month of such change. Each member is required to send to the Secretariat at the latest by April 1st of each year a report containing the following information: the name, address and email address of the Federation; the name and email address of the President (who, regardless of his title within the federation, shall be referred to as such within these Statutes and any other FIDE regulations); the name and email address of the General Secretary; the name and email address of the officer who is the intermediary between the member and FIDE (the Delegate); the names of the national champions; the title and address of the official bulletin, if any; the numbers of players belonging directly or indirectly to the federation on January 1st of the year in question, or, if this is not possible, at the end of the previous fiscal year; When a federation does not supply the data mentioned in sub (g), the Secretariat shall determine the number of members, after consultation with the President of the Zone. The same procedure shall be applied when the data given by the federation contains obvious mistakes.
2.5.	Members not fulfilling the duties mentioned in art. 2.4 may be temporarily excluded from FIDE by a decision of the General Assembly/Executive Board/Presidential Board and permanently excluded from FIDE by a decision of the General Assembly. A member in arrears in the fulfilment of its financial obligations towards FIDE may be temporarily excluded by the Presidential Board, Executive Board or General Assembly. This temporary exclusion shall be annulled if the temporarily excluded member has fulfilled its financial obligations 60 days before the General Assembly following the temporary exclusion. No participation in any FIDE event or meeting will be permitted during the exclusion period. Payments made after the 60 days but before the General Assembly will not allow participation without a majority approval of the General Assembly. The Treasurer shall include information in his report on those federations that should be temporary or permanently excluded. A temporary exclusion made by the Presidential Board or Executive Board shall be submitted to the next General Assembly, which will decide on the permanent exclusion of the negligent federation. This must be an agenda item prior to any election. In other matters a permanent exclusion can be ruled by the General Assembly only if the member is guilty of a severe offence against the statutes, regulations, resolutions or decisions, or acts against the principles of FIDE, taking into account the opinion of the Ethics Commission. This must be an agenda item prior to any election.
2.6.	The members have the right to withdraw from FIDE. The Secretariat must be informed in writing of the withdrawal at the latest three months in advance. Payment of membership fees and all other contributions remains obligatory until the date of withdrawal becomes effective. Membership fees or other contributions will not be refunded if a member withdraws or is excluded.
2.7	A provisional member has all the rights and obligations of a full member except that a provisional member does not have the right to vote in the General Assembly nor are its representatives eligible to stand for FIDE offices. The rules for withdrawal or exclusion are the same as for full members. If a provisional member has not achieved full membership status within five years, then the provisional membership may be reconfirmed for five year periods by the General Assembly, failing which the provisional membership would automatically cease.
B - Organisations and Individuals
2.8	Affiliated international chess organisations are: organisations which represent the interests of regions or other groupings consisting of affiliated FIDE federations. other chess related organisations Affiliations of international chess organisations are decided by the General Assembly. They have a right to attend the Annual Congress as observers but with no voting rights.
2.9.	Individual members are: Honorary members and Honorary Presidents of FIDE who are nominated as such because of their special contribution to world-wide chess. Life members and Friends of FIDE are persons who have made a financial contribution to FIDE, as then decided by the General Assembly. The General Assembly decides on individual members. Individual members have a right to attend the Annual Congress as observers but with no voting rights. Only former Presidents of FIDE can be nominated as Honorary Presidents. Only one Honorary President may serve on the Presidential Board at any time. When a new Honorary President is named by the General Assembly, the previous holder will retain the title but no longer serve on the Presidential Board.

03. FIDE officials and organs

The FIDE officials and organs are:

Officials:
a	the President
b	the Honorary President
c	the Deputy President
d	the General Secretary
e	the Treasurer
f	the Vice Presidents
g	the Honorary Vice Presidents
h	the Continental Presidents
i	the Zonal Presidents
j	the Executive Director
k	the Auditor
l	the Chairmen of Commissions
Organs:
m	the General Assembly
n	the Executive Board
o	the Presidential Board
p	the Secretariat
q	the elected and appointed Commissions

The President and all other FIDE officials and organs are either elected by the General Assembly or appointed (i.e. nominated by the President and confirmed by the General Assembly) for a period of four years. If the FIDE Congress in the election year is held before or after the 4-year period expires, the term of office is equally shortened or prolonged.

The President can nominate up to five additional Vice Presidents, with a minimum of three, subject to confirmation by the General Assembly as described in the Electoral Regulations. The same number of Vice Presidents shall be elected by the General Assembly as described in the Electoral Regulations.

The Presidential Board shall determine the location of the Secretariat and of any branch offices. The Secretariat is the main branch office of FIDE and deals with the administration of the organisation and receives all bids for events and notifications from members.

Only the General Assembly may create additional FIDE official positions and organs.

The Annual Congress includes the meetings of the Commissions, Executive Board and, when applicable, the General Assembly and Presidential Board. It may also host meetings of affiliated organisations such as the Continents.

Whenever any FIDE official has a financial or personal interest in any matter coming before any FIDE body on which he has a deliberative voice or vote, the affected person shall (i) fully disclose the nature of the interest to the relevant body and (ii) withdraw from discussion, lobbying, and voting on the matter. Any transaction or vote involving a potential conflict of interest shall be approved only when the necessary majority of disinterested FIDE officials needed to approve the matter in question determine that it is in the best interest of FIDE to do so. The minutes of meetings at which such votes are taken shall record all disclosures, abstentions, rationales for approval, and votes.

FIDE officials may not simultaneously hold another position within the organisation that creates a conflict of interest.

All income received by Presidential Board members as an arbiter or an appeals committee member from FIDE events and from a Continental Association or Continental events shall be disclosed. The Treasurer’s report will disclose the salary and benefits of the Executive Director.

10.

When an elected FIDE office becomes vacant for any reason during the course of a term, the Presidential Board may make an appointment, from among its own members, to fill the office until the next ordinary elections, except for the President, elected Vice Presidents, Continental Presidents and elected Commission members. A vacancy for the position of President shall not be filled. A vacancy for the position of elected Vice President shall be filled at the next General Assembly, for a member of an elected Commission at the next General Assembly or Executive Board . In a non-election year the relevant provisions of the electoral regulations shall apply by analogy. A vacant position for Continental President shall be filled by the respective Continental Association.

11.

A vacancy in the position of nominated Commission Chairman may be filled by the President.

12.

A vacancy in the position of Executive Director may be filled by the President and confirmed by the next General Assembly.

04. The General Assembly

4.1.	The General Assembly, being the highest authority of FIDE, exercises the legislative and - unless otherwise defined below - also the executive power. It supervises the activities of the Executive Board, the Presidential Board, the FIDE President and also the other FIDE officials and organs. It approves the FIDE budget, elects the Presidential Board, Ethics Commission, Verification Commission and Constitutional Commission and determines the schedule of FIDE activities. Unless otherwise provided by the Statutes or Regulations (e.g. in the case of the Ethics Commission and the Electoral Commission), the General Assembly will be the internal appellate organ for all decisions of FIDE organs and officials. When the General Assembly is not in session its powers are transferred to the Executive Board. However, the Executive Board cannot take decisions on the following: election of officials final admittance and permanent exclusion of member federations changes in Statutes, changes to regulations of Rules and Tournaments Commission changes to regulations of Qualification Commission, changes in the Electoral Regulations All decisions taken by the Executive Board may be reviewed by the following General Assembly. A directly aggrieved party may appeal directly to CAS against a decision by the Executive Board if, and only if, that party would suffer irreparable harm by having to wait until the next General Assembly for a final decision.
4.2.	The General Assembly is composed of: the representatives of the member-federations and their counsellors, the members of the Executive Board, the representative of the affiliated international chess organizations, the Honorary Members, Honorary Presidents, Life Members and Friends of FIDE, the chairmen of the permanent commissions the current World Champion and the current Women`s World Champion
4.3.	A member federation shall be represented at the General Assembly by its delegate (who may surrender his voting power to the President of the federation in accordance with the Electoral Regulations) or the holder of the irrevocable proxy of the federation that has been validly and timely granted in accordance with Electoral Regulations. The following priority shall apply: (1) holder of a valid and timely proxy; (2) the delegate. A proxy can be assigned and re-assigned only to the delegate of another federation. Each delegateis permitted to represent, besides their own, only one additional federation. A delegatemay be aided by one counsellor or the President of the federation. The name of the counsellor must be advised to the FIDE Secretariat by 17.00 h on the day before the opening session of the General Assembly by the delegate of the federation. Only delegates, Presidents of federations or members of the Presidential Board have the right to speak in the General Assembly.
4.4.	Each member-federation represented in the General Assembly has one vote. The other participants in the General Assembly have a consultative voice only. Motions of order (closing of the discussion, adjournment of the agenda point, removing the point from the agenda, etc.) may be made at any time on a point under discussion by the delegate of any member federation. The Chairman of the meeting must have these motions considered and decided upon at once by the General Assembly in so far as they do not entail an interruption of the session. The same applies to objections because of violation of the statutes. Proposals regarding amendments or supplementary proposals will be treated only if they are seconded by another voting member.
4.5.	In meetings of the General Assembly or Extraordinary General Assembly, the quorum shall be 50% of the voting members. This shall be established by a roll call at the beginning of the meeting and no further roll calls are needed to establish a quorum unless requested. If the quorum is not fulfilled at the beginning of the General Assembly, the Executive Board will decide which items of the agenda can be submitted for decision by the truncated General Assembly. The items put on the agenda shall not include changes of statutes, financial regulations or election of officials of FIDE.
4.6.	The sessions of the General Assembly are public, unless it is decided otherwise by simple majority vote.
4.7.	A proposal or a decision which raises no objection is accepted unanimously as a decision of the General Assembly. General applause is also regarded as acceptance of a decision. If there is an objection, duly seconded, then a decision is made by a show of hands. If the requisite majority has clearly been reached, the proposal or decision has passed. The representative of any member federation may bring a motion questioning whether the requisite majority has been reached. Votes on elections for the Presidential ticket and the elected Vice Presidents shall be made by secret ballot. The elections for the elected Commissions shall be made by open vote, unless otherwise decided by a two thirds majority. When there are no more candidates than positions to be filled, the candidates shall be deemed elected. There must always be an election for the Presidential ticket. A secret ballot is held for the award for hosting the Olympiad. A request for a roll call ballot can be made for any award of a World Championship event. Each recommendation by the Executive Board is voted upon first, after discussion, in the General Assembly. In other cases amendments are voted upon first. Supplementary proposals are voted upon only after a decision on the main proposal; they will be discussed and voted upon in the reverse order in which they were made. The voting procedures of the General Assembly will be explained at the outset of the meeting.
4.8.	Decisions shall be made with the majority of the votes delivered, without taking into account abstentions. For the exceptions hereto see Art. 4.15 & Art. 15.1. For elections, special election regulations are operative. See Article A.04
4.9.	In the event of a tie in voting, the FIDE President decides (with the exception of elections).
4.10.	Prior to voting all relevant communications from absent members shall be brought to the attention of those present.
4.11.	Proposals of members or FIDE officials or organisations, or affiliated international organisations admitted under Art. 2.8, which are to be included in the agenda for the General Assembly, should reach the Secretariat not later than three months before the beginning of the General Assembly, together with the reasons for the proposals. Proposals submitted within this time limit must be included in the agenda for the General Assembly. Commission’s draft reports to be discussed by the General Assembly shall also reach the Secretariat at least three months before the meeting is due. They will be considered as final following examination at the Commission’s meeting during the session of the Annual Congress and submitted to the General Assembly/Executive Board for approval. Proposals tabled at the Annual Congress without due notice shall be subject to appraisal at the first Presidential Board meeting following the Congress. The Presidential Board shall not have the power to rescind the decision, only to delay implementation until the proposal is further studied at the next Congress.
4.12.	The regular General Assembly is held every Olympiad year. It is convened by the President. The invitations shall be sent out at the latest four months prior to the opening date of the General Assembly. Invitations can be sent by email. The Secretariat shall send the participants the complete agenda and the relevant documents at the latest six weeks prior to the opening of the General Assembly (or be published on the official website of FIDE). No other item may be discussed except in an emergency situation where evidence must be established and with the approval by a two thirds majority vote of those present, including proxies. All decisions by the General Assembly shall be given an alpha-numeric designation. The decisions of the General Assembly will be published on the FIDE web site within two weeks of the close of the meeting. The final minutes shall be published no later than eight weeks after the meeting is closed. The Secretariat shall publish any amendments to the FIDE Statutes and regulations on the FIDE website within three weeks of the close of the General Assembly meeting at which they were adopted. A separate document showing the amendments in track changes shall be included.
4.13.	Place and date of the General Assembly are determined: by the preceding General Assembly, or in the absence of such a decision, by the FIDE President.
4.14	An Extraordinary General Assembly shall be convened by the FIDE President upon request of one-third of the member-federations within two months of such a request. In urgent cases the President, with the consent of the Executive Board or Presidential Board, also has the right to convene an Extraordinary General Assembly. The agenda for the Extraordinary General Assembly shall be sent to participants at least one month before the meeting is held.
4.15	Statutes can be changed only by the General Assembly and only upon proposal by the FIDE President, the Executive Board, Presidential Board or any member-federation. Two thirds of the votes delivered without taking into account abstentions are required to effect such changes.
4.16	Decisions made by the General Assembly concerning the statutes, the standing orders or the electoral regulations will come into effect on the last day of the General Assembly, after the General Assembly is closed.
4.17	For those matters not previously mentioned, the electoral procedures are defined in the Electoral Regulations in Article A.04. The Electoral regulations are approved by the General Assembly by simple majority. The Electoral Commission is regulated in the Statutes in Chapter 8.

05. The Executive Board

5.1.	The Executive Board concerns itself with matters that are usually dealt with by the General Assembly and in particular with the annual reports of the President and the Treasurer as well as all further subjects listed on the agenda for the General Assembly and recommends actions. During Olympiad years the Executive Board will only hold an abbreviated meeting which will discuss only those issues which are paramount on the agenda and have broad interest or those that may generate controversy at the General Assembly.
5.2.	The Executive Board consists of: the FIDE President, the Honorary President, the Deputy President, the General Secretary, the Treasurer, the Vice Presidents, the Honorary Vice-Presidents, the four Continental Presidents, the four Continental Deputy Presidents, the Zonal Presidents, four elected representatives from each of the Continents, the Auditor, the current World Champion and the current Women`s World Champion. With the exception of the Zonal Presidents the members of the Executive Board officiate in person. No replacement is possible. FIDE shall be informed of the name of any substitute of a Zonal President in writing. This substitute must be a member of the same zone. The Chairmen of Commissions or their representative shall be entitled to attend the Executive Board and to speak upon matters affecting their Commission but shall not be entitled to vote unless they are also a member of the Executive Board. The representative of the ICCF shall be invited to attend the meetings of the Executive Board and have an observer voice, but no vote. All member federations are welcome to attend the meetings of the Executive Board.
5.3.	The Executive Board meets as a rule immediately before the General Assembly and once per non Olympiad year. The Executive Board can be convened by the FIDE President at any time. Procedures are subject to the same articles as set out for the General Assembly. In meetings of the Executive Board, the quorum shall be 50% of the voting members.
5.4.	The Agenda of the meetings of the Executive Board and the minutes are subject to the same procedures as the General Assembly.

06. Continental Associations

6.1	The General Purpose The Continental Associations (hereinafter referred to as CA) are established under FIDE for chess development in each Continent. Africa, America, Asia, and Europe have each established an operating organisation to strengthen ties between countries and establish mutual goals and representation. The CA will be responsible for the organisation of Continental championships under the auspices of FIDE. The organisation of these Associations, elections of their representatives and the regulations of continental events shall be consistent with FIDE rules and regulations. A copy of the CA statutes should be lodged with FIDE.
6.2	Members Any National Federation on the respective Continent as defined in FIDE Statutes Art 2.1 is considered a member of the CA. Any International association can be accepted as an associate CA member with observer status.
6.3	Officials Each Continental Association will be responsible for electing a President and Deputy President and 4 Representatives to the FIDE Executive Board, other officers elected by the CA may include, but not limited to, a Secretary and Treasurer. The CA shall notify the Secretariat of the results of the elections and the General Assembly shall take note. Each Continental President is a member of the FIDE Presidential Board and amongst his duties he shall report on Continental activities to the Presidential Board.
6.4	An appeal against a decision of a Continental President must be made in writing to the FIDE President with a copy to the Continental President. The Continental President must immediately send his comments to the FIDE President. When an appeal is made by a member federation it has to be signed by the federation's President. Otherwise it will not be considered.
6.5	In matters concerning only the interests of the members of their continents and their Zonal Presidents, but not concerning the rights and duties of a member towards FIDE, the Continental Presidents have equal rights and duties towards the members of the continent or Zonal Presidents as the FIDE President has towards all members of FIDE.
6.6	Continental Assembly meeting The Continental Assembly Meeting will be held on an annual basis. This meeting will be the official annual meeting at which time business of the Continent is conducted.

07. The Presidential Board

7.1.	The Presidential Board is the managing organisation of FIDE and is in charge of the day-to-day management of FIDE. It resolves on all matters not otherwise and explicitly reserved to another body by these Statutes. The Presidential Board exercises the rights of the General Assembly and the Executive Board between meetings of the General Assembly and the Executive Board respectively. Such powers include taking decisions which require a three quarter majority vote such as Article 1.2. However, the Presidential Board cannot take decisions on the following: election of officials, changes in Statutes, changes to regulations of the Rules & Tournament Commission, changes to regulations of the Qualification Commission, changes to Electoral Regulations
7.2.	The Presidential Board consists of the FIDE President, the Honorary President, the Deputy President, the General Secretary, the Treasurer, the Vice Presidents, the four Continental Presidents, current World Champion, current Women`s World Champion and the Honorary Vice-Presidents. Honorary Vice Presidents are ex officio members of the Presidential Board without vote. The Auditor shall be invited to all the Presidential Board meetings. The Auditor should not be a member of the Presidential Board when he is elected by the General Assembly.
7.3.	A Steering Committee consisting of the FIDE President, Deputy President, General Secretary, Treasurer and the two Vice Presidents elected on the Presidential ticket, can convene as necessary to discuss urgent and developing issues. All actions taken by the Steering Committee must be ratified by the Presidential Board.
7.4.	The Presidential Board should meet at least once every three months. In addition the FIDE President may at any time convene the Presidential Board for consultation in person or teleconference. In meetings of the Presidential Board, the quorum shall be 50% of the voting members.
7.5.	The Agenda of the meetings of the Presidential Board, as well as the relevant documents, shall reach members at least one week before the meeting. Any other item may be excluded from discussion. Commission reports must be received two weeks before the Presidential Board. All decisions shall be given an alpha-numeric designation. The final minutes shall be distributed to members of the Board no later than one month after a meeting is closed. FIDE will publish the agenda and decisions on the FIDE web site.

08. The Commissions of FIDE

Commissions
In order to facilitate the work of FIDE, Commissions shall be formed. In the case of those Commissions that are not elected by the General Assembly, the regulations are in Administration Subjects A.02.

Elected Commissions

Ethics Commission (ETH)
1	Objectives and Competencies
	The Ethics Commission shall consider any alleged breaches of FIDE Code of Ethics as specified in the FIDE Code of Ethics and in accordance with the Ethics Commission Procedural Rules. The Ethics Commission shall have competence over cases that come under the jurisdiction of FIDE and over the conduct of FIDE officials. The Ethics Commission shall have jurisdiction over the conduct of officials of member federations, associations, leagues and clubs as well as players, players’ agents and match agents if the case on which the alleged violation is based has international implications or affects various national federations of FIDE and is not judged at national level. The Ethics Commission shall also have jurisdiction over national cases if the competent organs of the national chess federations fail to prosecute such infringements or fail to prosecute them in compliance with the fundamental principles of law. National chess federations may attribute to the Ethics Commission an appeal competence over decisions of corresponding national organs when cases have international implications. The Ethics Commission may give an advisory opinion on the interpretation of the FIDE Statutes or on any linked legal question on any ethical matter at the request of any FIDE organ authorized by or in accordance with the FIDE Statutes.
2	Membership
	2.1	The ETH shall consist of five members.
	2.2	The FIDE President, a Continental President or a Federation may nominate the members.
	2.3	The Chairman and the other members of the Commission shall be elected by the GA for four years, shall not belong to the same Federation and shall not be re-elected for more than two consecutives mandates.
	2.4	If a member can no longer act through resignation or otherwise, he shall be replaced by the GA, or the EB if the GA is not in session, for the remaining time of his mandate.
	2.5	An independent Investigatory Chamber of the Ethics Commission, composed by three members who shall not belong to the same Federation of the Ethics Commission members, may be nominated by the Presidential Board and charged to address motivated reports to the Ethics Commission on specific cases or typologies of cases.
3	Proceedings
	3.1	Procedural rules are set out in the appendix to the Code of Ethics in Article A.09.

Constitutional Commission (CON)
1	Objectives
	1.1	To review any statutes changes
	1.2	To ensure that statutes changes occur in conformity with the procedural rules mentioned in the statutes
	1.3	To ensure that the legality of FIDE statutes is fully respected
2	Membership
	2.1	The Constitutional Commission shall consist of 5 members with, if possible, experience in the field of constitutional law. They shall be nominated by FIDE President, a Continental President, or by a Federation. They shall be elected by the GA for four years and shall not belong to the same Federation.
3	Proceedings
	3.1	The Chairman and the other members of the Commission shall be elected by the GA for four years and shall not belong to the same Federation.
	3.2	The Constitutional Commission shall meet at least once a year. If there is a need, for urgent reasons, an extraordinary meeting may be called by FIDE President or by the Chairman of the Commission.
	3.3	The Constitutional Commission shall report once a year to the GA, the EB or to the PB whenever an urgent situation arises.
	3.4	If a member of the Commission is unable to act through resignation or otherwise, or is absent from two successive meetings, he shall be replaced by the GA or the EB for the remaining period of the mandate. If the Chairman or Secretary is unable to act then the remaining members must immediately elect a replacement.

Verification Commission (VER)
1	Objectives
	1.1	To verify the annual accounts and the financial statements prepared by the Treasurer, review the external audit report and make recommendations to the GA or to the EB when the GA is not in session.
	1.2	To achieve their duties, the VER members have access to all documents related to expenses, income and statements of the Treasurer
2	Membership
	2.1	The VER shall consist of three members, with financial experience and expertise if possible. They shall be nominated by a Federation, Continental President or by the FIDE President. They shall be elected by the GA for four years and may not belong to the same Federation.
3	Proceedings
	3.1	The members of the VER shall elect the Chairman within themselves upon their election by the GA.
	3.2	The Chairman of the VER shall act as FIDE internal Auditor
	3.3	The Chairman shall appoint one of the members as a Secretary
	3.4	The VER shall meet every year by July 31st, after the annual financial statements prepared by the Treasurer and the External Auditor report are made available. It shall meet also during the Annual Congress.
	3.5	In urgent situations the VER can be summoned to an extraordinary meeting by the FIDE President, the Treasurer or its Chairman.
	3.6	If a member of the Commission can no more act through resignation or otherwise, or is absent for two successive meetings, he shall be replaced by the GA or the EB for the remaining period of the mandate.

Electoral Commission (ELE)
1	Objectives
	1.1	This Commission has the competence assigned by the Statutes and Electoral Regulations.
2	Membership
	2.1	The ELE shall consist of the Chairman of the Constitutional Commission and one representative from each Continent.Each Continental Association shall elect its representative at its last Annual Assembly before the General Assemblyand shall inform the Secretariat of the person so elected at least four months prior to the opening of the General Assembly.Each Presidential ticket shall have the right to nominate an observer to the Commission.
	2.2	The members of the ELE constituted for an election cannot be elected or nominated to any Presidential Board position in that election.
	2.3	The ELE shall automatically dissolve within one month of the close of the General Assembly meeting at which the elections took place or, if later, within one month after it has reached a decision on all complaints that have been brought before it.
	2.4	If a member elected to the ELE, pursuant to 2.1 above, is unable to act through force majeur, or an election must be held in a non-election year to fill a position that has become vacant and a Continental Association meeting cannot be held, the Continental President can nominate the Continent’s representative.
3	Proceedings
	3.1	The Chairman of the ELE shall be the Chairman of the Constitutional Commission.
	3.2	All complaints arising from FIDE’s quadrennial elections, including but not limited to the eligibility of candidates, and the conduct of the elections and appointments, must be brought before the ELE.
		3.2.1	Any such complaint must be addressed to the ELE in writing within two weeks following the event which gives rise to the complaint and copied to the Secretariat.
		3.2.2	Any complaint regarding eligibility of Presidential tickets or members of the tickets must be addressed to the ELE in writing and copied to the Secretariat within two weeks following the official announcement of the Presidential tickets by the Secretariat on the FIDE web site.
		3.2.3	The ELE must investigate all complaints brought to it.
		3.2.4	The ELE decides by majority vote. In the event of a tie, the vote of the Chairman of the ELE shall be decisive.
		3.2.5	The ELE must issue a reasoned decision in English in writing to the complainant within 10 days of its receipt of the complaint.
		All decisions of the ELE are final.
	3.4	Any decision of the ELE cannot be appealed to the General Assembly. Any decision of the ELE taken before the election can be appealed to CAS only as of the day after the close of the General Assembly (which day shall also be the start date of the 21 day deadline provided for in the CAS code or any other deadline for such appeals subsequently enacted by the CAS).
	3.5	The Commission shall verify who is entitled to vote at FIDE’s quadrennial Presidential elections in accordance with the Electoral Regulations.

09. The President and Deputy President

9.1.	The President represents FIDE officially and can solely sign for FIDE. All contracts signed by the President shall be subject to prior approval or subsequent ratification by the Presidential Board. Any contract that commits FIDE to an obligation or exposes FIDE to a potential liability of more than €100,000 must be submitted for ratification by the Executive Board or General Assembly.
9.2.	The President presides over the meetings of the General Assembly, the Executive Board and the Presidential Board.
9.3.	The President presents an annual report to the General Assembly.
9.4.	The President’s decisions may be appealed to the General Assembly, Executive Board or Presidential Board.
9.5.	If the President is unable to act or if he duly authorises, then he can be represented by the Deputy President who shall exercise the powers of the President. The Deputy President can thus represent FIDE officially and can solely sign for FIDE.
9.6.	In certain cases the FIDE President can also delegate specific tasks to other persons; this includes authorising in writing other FIDE officials to sign contracts on his behalf.

10. The General Secretary, Treasurer, Vice Presidents, Honorary Vice Presidents, Executive Director and Auditor of FIDE

10.1	The General Secretary aids the FIDE President in the accomplishment of his obligations. Specifically he shall be responsible for the supervision of the activities of the Commissions and the FIDE Calendar.
10.2	The Treasurer is responsible for the financial management of FIDE. He executes all decisions of FIDE concerning the financial management and reports on the status of FIDE's finances every quarter to the Presidential Board. The financial revenues of FIDE accrue from: membership fees; entry fees for participation in FIDE’s competitions or tournaments; contributions for services rendered or rights granted by FIDE to members or to third parties; other contributions
10.3	The Vice Presidents and Honorary Vice Presidents shall assist FIDE in whatever tasks are assigned to them.
10.4	The Executive Director shall be nominated by the FIDE President and confirmed by the General Assembly.
10.5	The Auditor heads the Verification Commission which is elected by the preceding General Assembly. He is authorized to examine the FIDE ledgers and to demand information pertaining to the financial management.

11. The Zonal Presidents

11.1	To facilitate the administrative work in FIDE, zones are created, if possible according to regional points of view. Each member-federation is assigned to a zone. The number of zones is not limited, but a zone should be created only if chess or administrative reasons require it. (1980 Congress Resolution: The General Assembly resolved that the following criteria be used in the future when changes in the Zonal division are necessary: a) geographic reasons; b) number of affiliated federations; c) strength of organisation; d) combined number of chess players; e) number of rated players; f) number of titled players; g) encouragement of play among affiliated federations; h) special considerations)
11.2	The management of each zone is assigned to a Zonal President. It is his responsibility to co-ordinate the activities of the affiliated federations in his zone.
11.3	The Zonal President represents, to the best of his ability, the interests of FIDE within his zone and those of the zone within FIDE. In matters concerning only the interests of the members within a zone but not concerning the rights and duties of a member towards FIDE, the Zonal President has equal rights and duties towards members of the zone as the FIDE President and the Continental Presidents towards all members of FIDE.
11.4	Appeals against a decision of a Zonal President shall be made to the relevant Continental President. The appeal against the decision of a Zonal President must be made in writing. It must be sent to the Continental President for his Continent with a copy to the Zonal President, who must immediately forward to the Continental President his point of view. When the appeal is made by the national federation, it has to be signed by the President of the federation otherwise it will not be considered.
11.5	Zonal Presidents are elected by members of their Zone for a period of four years (confirmed by the General Assembly). The General Assembly - apart from exceptional cases - shall agree in principle with the opinion expressed in the General Assembly by the majority of the representatives of the members belonging to the zone.
11.6	If unable to act, the Zonal President is entitled to delegate his duties to a representative of the members of the zone.

12. Removal from Office

12.1.

Any elected or appointed official in FIDE can be removed from his position for cause. Cause is defined as being contrary to the spirit and text of the statutes and regulations of their office. The action must have the agreement of the Ethics Committee and requires a two third vote of the Executive Board or a majority in the General Assembly. In such cases the General Assembly or the Executive Board can set up a committee of three persons to investigate and examine an offence (or an act against the principles of FIDE); the committee shall report to the General Assembly or Executive Board.

13. Final Settlement of Disputes

Appeals against FIDE decisions
13.1.	Notwithstanding any provisions to the contrary in these Statutes, any final decision taken by a FIDE organ (including the Ethics Commission), and any decision made by the Electoral Commission (Chapter 8, Art. 3.4 of the Statutes) may be challenged exclusively by way of appeal before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne, Switzerland, which will resolve the dispute in a final and binding manner in accordance with the Code of Sportsrelated Arbitration. Only parties directly aggrieved by a decision may appeal to the CAS. The time limit for appeal is twenty-one days from receipt by the appellant of the decision appealed against or, in the case of a decision by FIDE General Assembly, twenty-one days from the close of the General Assembly. The time-limit for appeal against decisions of the Electoral Commission is laid down in Chapter 8, Art. 3.4 of the Statutes.
13.2	An appeal before the CAS may only be brought after FIDE’s internal procedures and remedies have been exhausted (subject to the exception set forth in Article 4.1 in fine). The decisions of the Ethics Commission, Electoral Commission and General Assembly relating to matters falling within their respective competencies are final.
13.3	An appeal does not suspend the execution of the decision, unless the CAS so decides upon request of the appellant. The CAS shall not take into account facts or evidence which the appellant could have submitted to an internal FIDE body by acting with reasonable diligence required under the circumstances, but failed or chose not to do so. The CAS shall decide the dispute according to the FIDE Statutes, regulations and rules as well as according to Swiss law. The seat of the arbitration shall be Lausanne. The language of the arbitration shall be English. The decision of the CAS shall be final and binding on the parties.
13.4	Neither CAS nor any ordinary courts shall have jurisdiction to deal with matters related to the application of a purely sporting rule, such as the Laws of Chess, or the technical rules of a competition (e.g. FIDE Swiss Rules, FIDE Competition Rules).
Other disputes
13.5	The ordinary courts in Lausanne, Switzerland shall have exclusive jurisdiction to resolve any dispute between FIDE and third parties, including but not limited to member federations or any of their officials, players, organisers, arbiters, FIDE officials, candidates to any function as FIDE officials within the meaning of Article 3.1 of the Statutes, or affiliated organisations, in respect of a matter arising out of or in connection with the FIDE Statutes, Regulations and Rules, or agreements between FIDE and these persons and/or entities.
13.6	The ordinary courts in Lausanne shall apply the FIDE Statutes, Regulations and Rules as well as the substantive law specifically chosen by the parties to govern the merits of the dispute or, in the absence of such a choice, Swiss substantive law, excluding the conflict-of-laws rules.

14. Doping and Drug Use

14.1.

FIDE, in close collaboration with the National Chess Federations, the International Olympic Committee and the National Olympic Committees dedicates its efforts to ensuring that in chess the spirit of ‘Fair Play’ prevails, leads the fight against doping in sport and takes measures in order to prevent endangering the health of competitors. FIDE has accepted the World Anti-Doping Code and its international standards. Within FIDE the body responsible for this policy is the Medical Commission.

14.2.

The Commission will agree from time to time, with the International bodies, on the list of prohibited substances and methods of doping that are applicable to chess players. The Commission will be responsible for the Anti-Doping regulations and their execution.

15. Final Matters

15.1	FIDE will dissolve as soon as the number of members has been reduced to two. Moreover, FIDE can be dissolved by a decision of the General Assembly, if at least two-thirds of all members express themselves in favour of dissolution.
15.2	In case of dissolution, the General Assembly shall decide how to dispose of the FIDE assets, which are to be used for chess or for any other purpose contributing to the general good.