§1621. Definitions
For the purposes of this subchapter—
(a) The term "person" shall include an individual, partnership, corporation, or the Government of the United States.
(b) The term "United States" when used in a geographical sense shall include the United States, its Territories and insular possessions, and the Canal Zone.
(c) The term "nationals of the United States" includes (1) persons who are citizens of the United States, and (2) persons who, though not citizens of the United States, owe permanent allegiance to the United States. It does not include aliens.
(d) The term "Yugoslav Claims Agreement of 1948" means the agreement between the Governments of the United States of America and of the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia regarding pecuniary claims of the United States and its nationals, signed July 19, 1948.
(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title I, §2, 64 Stat. 13; Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, §§1, 2, 69 Stat. 562.)
Editorial Notes
References in Text
For definition of Canal Zone, referred to in subsec. (b), see section 3602(b) of this title.
Amendments
1955—Act Aug. 9, 1955, §1, amended credit to section by designating act Mar. 10, 1950, as "title I".
Act Aug. 9, 1955, §2, substituted "subchapter" for "chapter" in opening phrase.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
References to This Subchapter Deemed To Include Section 119 of H.R. 2076
References to this subchapter deemed to include section 119 of H.R. 2076, see section 119(b) of H.R. 2076, as enacted into law by Pub. L. 104–91, set out as an Authority of Foreign Claims Settlement Commission note under section 1644 of this title.
Short Title of 2026 Amendment
Pub. L. 119–82, §1, Apr. 13, 2026, 140 Stat. 752, provided that: "This Act [enacting and amending provisions set out as notes below] may be cited as the 'Holocaust Expropriated Art Recovery Act of 2025'."
Short Title of 1999 Amendment
Pub. L. 106–155, §1, Dec. 9, 1999, 113 Stat. 1740, provided that: "This Act [amending provisions set out as a note below] may be cited as the 'U.S. Holocaust Assets Commission Extension Act of 1999'."
Short Title
Act Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, §1, 64 Stat. 12, provided that: "This Act [enacting this chapter] may be cited as the 'International Claims Settlement Act of 1949'."
Titles of Act
Act Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, §§1, 3, 69 Stat. 562, designated sections 1621 to 1627 of this title as "Title I" of act Mar. 10, 1950, which is classified to subchapter I of this chapter and added "Title II—Vesting and Liquidation of Bulgarian, Hungarian, and Rumanian Property" and "Title III—Claims Against Bulgaria, Hungary, Rumania, Italy, and the Soviet Union", which are classified to subchapters II and III, respectively, of this chapter. Pub. L. 85–604 added Title IV, Claims Against Czechoslovakia, which is classified to subchapter IV of this chapter. Pub. L. 88–666 added Title V, Claims Against Cuba and China, which is classified to subchapter V of this chapter. Pub. L. 94–542 added Title VI, Claims Against German Democratic Republic, which is classified to subchapter VI of this chapter. Pub. L. 96–606 added Title VII, Claims Against Vietnam, which is classified to subchapter VII of this chapter.
Appropriations
Act Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, §9, 64 Stat. 18, provided that: "There is hereby authorized to be appropriated, out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, such sums as may be necessary to enable the Commission to carry out its functions under this Act [enacting this chapter]."
Guam World War II Loyalty Recognition
Pub. L. 114–328, div. A, title XVII, Dec. 23, 2016, 130 Stat. 2642, as amended by Pub. L. 116–132, §1, Mar. 26, 2020, 134 Stat. 273, provided that:
"SEC. 1701. SHORT TITLE.
"This title may be cited as the 'Guam World War II Loyalty Recognition Act'.
"SEC. 1702. RECOGNITION OF THE SUFFERING AND LOYALTY OF THE RESIDENTS OF GUAM.
"(a)
"(b)
"SEC. 1703. GUAM WORLD WAR II CLAIMS FUND.
"(a)
"(b)
"(c)
"(1)
"(A) any amount of duties, taxes, and fees collected under such section after fiscal year 2014, over
"(B) the amount of duties, taxes, and fees collected under such section during fiscal year 2014,
shall be deposited into the Claims Fund.
"(2)
"(d)
"(1)
"(2)
"(e)
"SEC. 1704. PAYMENTS FOR GUAM WORLD WAR II CLAIMS.
"(a)
"(1)
"(A) In the case of a victim who has suffered an injury described in subsection (c)(2)(A), $15,000.
"(B) In the case of a victim who is not described in subparagraph (A), but who has suffered an injury described in subsection (c)(2)(B), $12,000.
"(C) In the case of a victim who is not described in subparagraph (A) or (B), but who has suffered an injury described in subsection (c)(2)(C), $10,000.
"(2)
"(b)
"(1) In the case of a decedent whose spouse is living as of the date of the enactment of this Act [Dec. 23, 2016], but who had no living children as of such date, the payment shall be made to such spouse.
"(2) In the case of a decedent whose spouse is living as of the date of the enactment of this Act and who had one or more living children as of such date, 50 percent of the payment shall be made to the spouse and 50 percent shall be made to such children, to be divided among such children to the greatest extent possible into equal shares.
"(3) In the case of a decedent whose spouse is not living as of the date of the enactment of this Act and who had one or more living children as of such date, the payment shall be made to such children, to be divided among such children to the greatest extent possible into equal shares.
"(4) In the case of a decedent whose spouse is not living as of the date of the enactment of this Act and who had no living children as of such date, but who—
"(A) had a parent who is living as of such date, the payment shall be made to the parent; or
"(B) had two parents who are living as of such date, the payment shall be divided equally between the parents.
"(5) In the case of a decedent whose spouse is not living as of the date of the enactment of this Act, who had no living children as of such date, and who had no parents who are living as of such date, no payment shall be made.
"(c)
"(1)
"(2)
"(A) Rape or severe personal injury (such as loss of a limb, dismemberment, or paralysis).
"(B) Forced labor or a personal injury not under subparagraph (A) (such as disfigurement, scarring, or burns).
"(C) Forced march, internment, or hiding to evade internment.
"(3)
"SEC. 1705. ADJUDICATION.
"(a)
"(1)
"(2)
"(b)
"(1)
"(2)
"(A)
"(B)
"(i) in the Federal Register; and
"(ii) in newspaper, radio, and television media in Guam.
"(3)
"(A) be by majority vote;
"(B) be in writing;
"(C) state the reasons for the approval or denial of the claim; and
"(D) if approved, state the amount of the payment awarded and the distribution, if any, to be made of the payment.
"(4)
"(5)
"(6)
"(A)
"(B)
"(7)
"(8)
"(9)
"(10)
"SEC. 1706. GRANTS PROGRAM TO MEMORIALIZE THE OCCUPATION OF GUAM DURING WORLD WAR II.
"(a)
"(1) memorialize the events surrounding such occupation; or
"(2) honor the loyalty of the people of Guam during such occupation.
"(b)
"SEC. 1707. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
["(a) Repealed. Pub. L. 116–132, §1(3), Mar. 26, 2020, 134 Stat. 273.]
"(b)
[Pub. L. 116–132, §1(2), which directed amendment of section 1704(a) of Pub. L. 114–328, set out above, by substituting "from the Claims Fund" for ", subject to the availability of appropriations,", was executed by making the substitution for ", subject to the availably of appropriations," to reflect the probable intent of Congress.]
Holocaust Expropriated Art Recovery
Pub. L. 114–308, Dec. 16, 2016, 130 Stat. 1524, as amended by Pub. L. 119–82, §2(a), Apr. 13, 2026, 140 Stat. 752, provided that:
"SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
"This Act may be cited as the 'Holocaust Expropriated Art Recovery Act of 2016'.
"SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
"Congress finds the following:
"(1) It is estimated that the Nazis confiscated or otherwise misappropriated hundreds of thousands of works of art and other property throughout Europe as part of their genocidal campaign against the Jewish people and other persecuted groups. This has been described as the 'greatest displacement of art in human history'.
"(2) Following World War II, the United States and its allies attempted to return the stolen artworks to their countries of origin. Despite these efforts, many works of art were never reunited with their owners. Some of the art has since been discovered in the United States.
"(3) In 1998, the United States convened a conference with 43 other nations in Washington, DC, known as the Washington Conference, which produced Principles on Nazi-Confiscated Art. One of these principles is that 'steps should be taken expeditiously to achieve a just and fair solution' to claims involving such art that has not been restituted if the owners or their heirs can be identified.
"(4) The same year, Congress enacted the Holocaust Victims Redress Act (Public Law 105–158, 112 Stat. 15), which expressed the sense of Congress that 'all governments should undertake good faith efforts to facilitate the return of private and public property, such as works of art, to the rightful owners in cases where assets were confiscated from the claimant during the period of Nazi rule and there is reasonable proof that the claimant is the rightful owner.'.
"(5) In 2009, the United States participated in a Holocaust Era Assets Conference in Prague, Czech Republic, with 45 other nations. At the conclusion of this conference, the participating nations issued the Terezin Declaration, which reaffirmed the 1998 Washington Conference Principles on Nazi-Confiscated Art and urged all participants 'to ensure that their legal systems or alternative processes, while taking into account the different legal traditions, facilitate just and fair solutions with regard to Nazi-confiscated and looted art, and to make certain that claims to recover such art are resolved expeditiously and based on the facts and merits of the claims and all the relevant documents submitted by all parties.'. The Declaration also urged participants to 'consider all relevant issues when applying various legal provisions that may impede the restitution of art and cultural property, in order to achieve just and fair solutions, as well as alternative dispute resolution, where appropriate under law.'.
"(6) Victims of Nazi persecution and their heirs have taken legal action in the United States to recover Nazi-confiscated art. These lawsuits face significant procedural obstacles partly due to State statutes of limitations, which typically bar claims within some limited number of years from either the date of the loss or the date that the claim should have been discovered. In some cases, this means that the claims expired before World War II even ended. (See, e.g., Detroit Institute of Arts v. Ullin, No. 06–10333, 2007 WL 1016996 (E.D. Mich. Mar. 31, 2007).) The unique and horrific circumstances of World War II and the Holocaust make statutes of limitations especially burdensome to the victims and their heirs. Those seeking recovery of Nazi-confiscated art must painstakingly piece together their cases from a fragmentary historical record ravaged by persecution, war, and genocide. This costly process often cannot be done within the time constraints imposed by existing law.
"(7) Federal legislation is needed because the only court that has considered the question held that the Constitution prohibits States from making exceptions to their statutes of limitations to accommodate claims involving the recovery of Nazi-confiscated art. In Von Saher v. Norton Simon Museum of Art, 592 F.3d 954 (9th Cir. 2009), the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit invalidated a California law that extended the State statute of limitations for claims seeking recovery of Holocaust-era artwork. The Court held that the law was an unconstitutional infringement of the Federal Government's exclusive authority over foreign affairs, which includes the resolution of war-related disputes. In light of this precedent, the enactment of a Federal law is necessary to ensure that claims to Nazi-confiscated art are adjudicated in accordance with United States policy as expressed in the Washington Conference Principles on Nazi-Confiscated Art, the Holocaust Victims Redress Act, and the Terezin Declaration.
"(8) The intent of this Act is to permit claims to recover Nazi-looted art to be brought, notwithstanding the passage of time since World War II. Some courts have frustrated the intent of this Act by dismissing recovery lawsuits in reliance on defenses based on the passage of time, such as laches (for example, Zuckerman v[.] Metropolitan Museum of Art, 928 F.3d 186 (2d Cir. 2019)) or adverse possession, acquisitive prescription, or usucapion (for example, Cassirer v. Thyssen-Bornemisza [Collection] Foundation, 89 F.4th 1226 (9th Cir. 2024)) or on other non-merits discretionary defenses, such as the act of state doctrine (for example, Von Saher v[.] Norton Simon Museum of Art at Pasadena, 897 F.3d 1141 (9th Cir. 2018)), forum non conveniens, international comity, or prudential exhaustion. In order to effectuate the purpose of the Act to permit claims to recover Nazi-looted art to be resolved on the merits, these defenses must be precluded.
"(9) This Act also is intended to allow claims in accordance with the procedures under this Act for the recovery of artwork or other property lost during the covered period because, or as a result, of Nazi persecution, including by a covered government (as defined in section 1605(h)(3)(B) of title 28, United States Code) or an agent or associate of a covered government, regardless of the nationality or citizenship of the alleged victim, notwithstanding the 'domestic takings' rule under Federal Republic of Germany v. Philipp, 592 U.S. 169 (2021).
"(10) While litigation may be used to resolve claims to recover Nazi-confiscated art, it is the sense of Congress that the private resolution of claims by parties involved, on the merits and through the use of alternative dispute resolution such as mediation panels established for this purpose with the aid of experts in provenance research and history, may, in some circumstances, yield just and fair resolutions as well.
"SEC. 3. PURPOSES.
"The purposes of this Act are the following:
"(1) To ensure that laws governing claims to Nazi-confiscated art and other property further United States policy as set forth in the Washington Conference Principles on Nazi-Confiscated Art, the Holocaust Victims Redress Act, and the Terezin Declaration.
"(2) To ensure that claims to artwork and other property stolen or misappropriated by the Nazis are not unfairly barred by statutes of limitations and other non-merits defenses but are resolved in a just and fair manner.
"SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.
"In this Act:
"(1)
"(2)
"(A) pictures, paintings, and drawings;
"(B) statuary art and sculpture;
"(C) engravings, prints, lithographs, and works of graphic art;
"(D) applied art and original artistic assemblages and montages;
"(E) books, archives, musical objects and manuscripts (including musical manuscripts and sheets), and sound, photographic, and cinematographic archives and mediums; and
"(F) sacred and ceremonial objects and Judaica.
"(3)
"(4)
"(5)
"SEC. 5. STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.
"(a)
"(1) the identity and location of the artwork or other property; and
"(2) a possessory interest of the claimant in the artwork or other property.
"(b)
"(c)
"(d)
"(1) before the date of enactment of this Act—
"(A) a claimant had knowledge of the elements set forth in subsection (a); and
"(B) the civil claim or cause of action was barred by a Federal or State statute of limitations; or
"(2)(A) before the date of enactment of this Act, a claimant had knowledge of the elements set forth in subsection (a); and
"(B) on the date of enactment of this Act, the civil claim or cause of action was not barred by a Federal or State statute of limitations.
"(e)
"(1) pending in any court on the date of enactment of this Act [Dec. 16, 2016], including any civil claim or cause of action that is pending on appeal or for which the time to file an appeal has not expired; or
"(2) filed on or after the date of enactment of this Act.
"(f)
"(1) all defenses or substantive doctrines based on the passage of time, including laches, adverse possession, acquisitive prescription, and usucapion, may not be applied with respect to the claim; and
"(2) all non-merits discretionary bases for dismissal, including the act of state doctrine, international comity, forum non conveniens, prudential exhaustion, and similar doctrines unrelated to the merits, may not be applied with respect to the claim.
"(g)
"(h)
"(1) the claimant or a predecessor-in-interest of the claimant had knowledge of the elements set forth in subsection (a) on or after January 1, 1999; and
"(2) not less than 6 years have passed from the date such claimant or predecessor-in-interest acquired such knowledge and during which time the civil claim or cause of action was not barred by a Federal or State statute of limitations.
"(i)
"SEC. 6. SEVERABILITY.
"If any provision of this Act, or the application of a provision of this Act to any person or circumstance, is held invalid, the remainder of this Act, and the application of such provision to other persons and circumstances, shall not be affected thereby."
[Pub. L. 119–82, §2(b), Apr. 13, 2026, 140 Stat. 754, provided that: "The amendments made by subsection (a) [amending Pub. L. 114–308, set out above] shall apply with respect to any civil claim or cause of action that is—
["(1) pending in any court on the date of enactment of this Act [Apr. 13, 2026], including any civil claim or cause of action that is pending on appeal or for which the time to file an appeal has not expired; or
["(2) filed on or after the date of enactment of this Act."]
United States Holocaust Assets Commission
Pub. L. 105–186, June 23, 1998, 112 Stat. 611, as amended by Pub. L. 106–155, §2, Dec. 9, 1999, 113 Stat. 1740; Pub. L. 117–286, §4(a)(164), Dec. 27, 2022, 136 Stat. 4323, provided that:
"SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
"This Act may be cited as the 'U.S. Holocaust Assets Commission Act of 1998'.
"SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION.
"(a)
"(b)
"(1)
"(2)
"(A) eight shall be private citizens, appointed by the President;
"(B) four shall be representatives of the Department of State, the Department of Justice, the Department of the Army, and the Department of the Treasury (one representative of each such Department), appointed by the President;
"(C) two shall be Members of the House of Representatives, appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives;
"(D) two shall be Members of the House of Representatives, appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives;
"(E) two shall be Members of the Senate, appointed by the majority leader of the Senate;
"(F) two shall be Members of the Senate, appointed by the minority leader of the Senate; and
"(G) one shall be the Chairperson of the United States Holocaust Memorial Council.
"(3)
"(4)
"(5)
"(c)
"(d)
"(e)
"(f)
"(g)
"SEC. 3. DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION.
"(a)
"(1)
"(A) after having been obtained from victims of the Holocaust by, on behalf of, or under authority of a government referred to in subsection (c);
"(B) because such assets were left unclaimed as the result of actions taken by, on behalf of, or under authority of a government referred to in subsection (c); or
"(C) in the case of assets consisting of gold bullion, monetary gold, or similar assets, after such assets had been obtained by the Nazi government of Germany from governmental institutions in any area occupied by the military forces of the Nazi government of Germany.
"(2)
"(A) gold, including gold bullion, monetary gold, or similar assets in the possession of or under the control of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System or any Federal reserve bank;
"(B) gems, jewelry, and nongold precious metals;
"(C) accounts in banks in the United States;
"(D) domestic financial instruments purchased before May 8, 1945, by individual victims of the Holocaust, whether recorded in the name of the victim or in the name of a nominee;
"(E) insurance policies and proceeds thereof;
"(F) real estate situated in the United States;
"(G) works of art; and
"(H) books, manuscripts, and religious objects.
"(3)
"(4)
"(A)
"(i) The list maintained by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., of Jewish Holocaust survivors.
"(ii) The list maintained by the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial Authority in its Hall of Names of individuals who died in the Holocaust.
"(B)
"(i) The number of policies issued by each company to individuals described in such subparagraph.
"(ii) The value of each policy at the time of issue.
"(iii) The total number of policies, and the dollar amount, that have been paid out.
"(iv) The total present-day value of assets in the United States of each company.
"(C)
"(b)
"(1) after having been obtained from victims of the Holocaust by, on behalf of, or under authority of a government referred to in subsection (c); or
"(2) because such assets were left unclaimed as the result of actions taken by, on behalf of, or under authority of a government referred to in subsection (c).
"(c)
"(1) the Nazi government of Germany;
"(2) any government in any area occupied by the military forces of the Nazi government of Germany;
"(3) any government established with the assistance or cooperation of the Nazi government of Germany; and
"(4) any government which was an ally of the Nazi government of Germany.
"(d)
"(1)
"(2)
"SEC. 4. POWERS OF THE COMMISSION.
"(a)
"(b)
"(c)
"(d)
"(e)
"(1) enter into contracts and modify, or consent to the modification of, any contract or agreement to which the Commission is a party; and
"(2) acquire, hold, lease, maintain, or dispose of real and personal property.
"SEC. 5. COMMISSION PERSONNEL MATTERS.
"(a)
"(b)
"(c)
"(1)
"(2)
"(3)
"(A) serve as principal liaison between the Commission and other Government entities;
"(B) be responsible for the administration and coordination of the review of records by the Commission; and
"(C) be responsible for coordinating all official activities of the Commission.
"(4)
"(A) the rate of pay for the executive director of the Commission may not exceed the rate payable for level III of the Executive Schedule under section 5314 of title 5, United States Code; and
"(B) the rate of pay for the deputy executive director, the general counsel of the Commission, and other Commission personnel may not exceed the rate payable for level IV of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 of title 5, United States Code.
"(5)
"(A)
"(B)
"(6)
"(A) may promulgate regulations to apply the provisions referred to under subsection (a) to employees of the Commission; and
"(B) shall provide support services, on a reimbursable basis, relating to—
"(i) the initial employment of employees of the Commission; and
"(ii) other personnel needs of the Commission.
"(d)
"(e)
"(f)
"(g)
"(1)
"(2)
"(h)
"SEC. 6. ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT SERVICES.
"Upon the request of the Commission, the Administrator of General Services shall provide to the Commission, on a reimbursable basis, the administrative support services necessary for the Commission to carry out its responsibilities under this Act.
"SEC. 7. TERMINATION OF THE COMMISSION.
"The Commission shall terminate 90 days after the date on which the Commission submits its final report under section 3.
"SEC. 8. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS.
"(a)
"(b)
"SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
"There are authorized to be appropriated not more than $6,000,000, in total, for the interagency funding of activities of the Commission under this Act for fiscal years 1998, 1999, 2000, and 2001, of which, notwithstanding section 1346 of title 31, United States Code, and section 611 of the Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act, 1998 [Pub. L. 105–61, 111 Stat. 1310], $537,000 shall be made available in equal amounts from funds made available for fiscal year 1998 to the Departments of Justice, State, and the Army that are otherwise unobligated. Funds made available to the Commission pursuant to this section shall remain available for obligation until December 31, 1999."
Executive Documents
Abolition of International Claims Commission and Transfer of Functions
International Claims Commission of the United States, including offices of its members, abolished and functions of Commission and of members, officers, and employees thereof transferred to Foreign Claims Settlement Commission of the United States by Reorg. Plan No. 1 of 1954, §§2, 4, eff. July 1, 1954, 19 F.R. 3985, 68 Stat. 1279, set out as a note under section 1622 of this title.