Ministry of Justice

Regulatory offences

Scales of Justice

Guidance for government departments and agencies on creating new regulatory penalties and offences.


The following guidance is primarily aimed at people working in central government departments and agencies who are thinking about creating new offences of non-compliance with regulations, and includes general principles about when civil sanctions might be more appropriate than criminal offences. The paper also offers advice on how to formulate criminal offences if this is considered the appropriate option.