An enacting clause is a short phrase that introduces the main provisions of a law enacted by a legislature. It is also called enacting formula or enacting words. It usually declares the source from which the law claims to derive its authority.
In many countries, an enacting formula is not considered necessary and is simply omitted. In the United States a motion to "strike the enacting clause", if passed, rejects the bill.
The simplest enacting clauses merely cite the legislature by which the law has been adopted; for example the enacting clause used in Australia since 1990 is "The Parliament of Australia enacts".
National legislatures
Albania Parliament of Albania:
Antigua and Barbuda Parliament of Antigua and Barbuda:
Argentina Congress of Argentina:
Australia Parliament of Australia Period Legislation Constitutional amendments passed at a referendum 1990–present 1973–1990 1901–1972
Austria National Council:
Bangladesh Jatiya Sangsad: Meteorological Act, 2018, Official Gazette of the Government of Bangladesh.
Barbados Parliament of Barbados: 1969: 1969 Companies Act., The Official Gazette of the Government of Barbados. 2020:
For bills amending the constitution:
The Bahamas Parliament of The Bahamas:
Belgium
In Belgium the enacting formula appears in the Belgian official journal (Belgisch Staatsblad/Moniteur belge) when the law is promulgated and published, but is usually thereafter not included when the law is printed in compilations, or stored in internet databases, even official ones. The enacting clause is as follows.
Belize Parliament of Belize:
Botswana Parliament of Botswana:
Brazil National Congress of Brazil:
In Brazil the presidential assent to a bill is called "sanction". After passing both houses of Congress (the Chamber of Deputies and the Federal Senate), the final version of the bill, duly signed by the presiding officers of both houses, is sent to the president of the republic. The document is still called a "proposed law", with a bill number, and with the header "The National Congress decrees:" (In Portuguese: "O Congresso Nacional decreta:"). If the president approves the bill, a different copy of the act is prepared by the Presidency of the Republic, with the official number of the law and the date of enactment of the law, and also with the replacement of the clause "The National Congress decrees:" with the above-mentioned formula "THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC: I make it known that the National Congress decrees and I sanction the following Law:". The signatures of the presiding officers of Congress are therefore not present in this version of the act. This is the version of the statute that is published in the Official Journal and that is included in the statute books. When granting his approval to a bill, the president signs both the bill sent to him by Congress and the final version of the statute with the presidential enacting formula. The signed bill is returned to Congress by means of a presidential message; the signed statute with the presidential enacting formula is printed in the Official Journal, and the original is thereafter sent to the National Archive. Thus, in Brazil, the president is always seen signing two different documents at bill signing ceremonies (the two documents are called the "autographs"): one is the text of the proposed law; the other is the final text of the statute. Technically, the first signature (on the autograph of the bill sent by Congress) is the "sanction to the proposed law", that is, the approval of the bill, that transforms it in a law, and the second signature (on the final version of the statute with the presidential enacting formula and a law number) is the promulgation, the announcement to the people that the law has been adopted. While the signature of the president on the bill includes the addition of the formula "I sanction it" (in Portuguese: "Sanciono") above the signature, this is not seen in the final "promulgation" autograph of the statute. On the other hand, the promulgated statute contains not only the signature of the president but also the countersignatures of his ministers principally charged with applying the law.
When the president vetoes a bill, and the veto is overridden, the bill is returned by Congress to the president not for sanction (approval) but merely for promulgation. In that case, the president is expected to promulgate the bill in 48 hours. In that situation, the enacting formula that appears in the final text of the adopted statute is as follows:
Tacit sanction (i.e. implicit approval) is deemed to take place if the president fails to sign or veto a bill within the constitutionally mandated timeframe of fifteen working days from receiving the bill. Once the bill is considered implicitly sanctioned, the president is expected to promulgate the new law and the same 48-hour timeframe applies. The formula in this case is:
Should the president refuse to promulgate, or fail to promulgate in the period of 48 hours, a bill, after his veto has been overridden by Congress, then the authority to promulgate the bill passes to the president of the Senate. In that case, the formula of promulgation is:
Should the president of the republic refuse to promulgate, or fail to promulgate in the period of 48 hours, a bill, after the bill has been implicitly sanctioned due to his failure to sign or veto it within the constitutionally mandated timeframe, then the authority to promulgate the bill passes to the president of the Senate. In that case, the formula of promulgation is:
Whenever the president adopts a provisional measure and the provisional measure is approved by Congress with changes, a normal bill is sent to the president for approval or veto, and the same formulas used for other bills are employed; once enacted, the new statute replaces the provisional measure. However, if the provisional measure adopted by the president is approved by Congress without changes, the bill does not need to be presented for approval or veto; in that case, the law that both corresponds fully to the provisional measure and replaces it is promulgated directly by the president of the Senate, with the following words:
Historical: General Assembly of the Empire of Brazil (1822–1889)
Whenever the General Assembly of the Empire (made up of a Senate and of a Chamber of Deputies) passed a bill, a decree of the General Assembly containing the articles of the approved bill was sent to the emperor for sanction or veto. The decree of the General Assembly began with the following formula (that did not appear in the final version of the statute, after the imperial sanction): "The General Assembly decrees:" (in Portuguese: "A Assembleia Geral decreta:"). The decree was still only a proposed law, that would become an actual law if sanctioned by the emperor. The General Assembly sent its decree to the emperor for sanction or veto by means of a message with the words following: "The General Assembly sends to the Emperor the enclosed decree, that it considers advantageous, and useful to the Empire, and it asks that His Imperial Majesty may be pleased to grant it His sanction" (in Portuguese: "A Assembleia Geral dirige ao Imperador o decreto incluso, que julga vantajoso e útil ao Império, e pede a Sua Majestade Imperial, se digne dar a Sua sanção"). If the emperor decided to sanction the decree, then he sent the message of the General Assembly back to the legislature, adding after the text of the decree of the General Assembly the following words, together with the date and his signature: ""The Emperor consents" (in Portuguese: "O Imperador consente"). Then, the executive branch prepared a formal document to promulgate the new law, and this document was known in the imperial period as a Charter of Law (in Portuguese: Carta de Lei). It was the chartered version of the law that was included in the statute books and that was printed and published for the knowledge of the people. Thus, the Charter of Law was the final version of the statute as adopted. It was signed by the emperor and countersigned by his responsible ministers, and contained an enacting formula as follows:
When the powers of the emperor were discharged by regents on behalf of the monarch the formula was as follows:
Canada Parliament of Canada:
The enacting clause for money bills differs. For example, in the Appropriation Act No. 4, 2015–16, it reads as follows:
Chile National Congress of Chile:
Colombia Congress of Colombia:
Croatia Hrvatski sabor:
Words "Hrvatski sabor" (Croatian Parliament) are printed in uppercase as a header on all laws, thereby starting the enacting clause and symbolizing that there is no authority higher than the Parliament. This might be rooted in a popular quote from Ante Starčević in a parliamentary discussion in June 1861, as he stated that there is no-one above the parliamentary sovereignty (other than God and the people of Croatia). A brief statement follows, signed by the president of Croatia, promulgating the law, referring to his constitutional right to do so and the session of the parliament where the legislation has been passed.
Denmark The Danish Folketing:
Dominica Parliament of Dominica:
Finland Parliament of Finland (from 1917 onwards):
Ordinary Acts (enacted in accordance with § 72 of the Constitution):
Acts containing a limited derogation from the Constitution (enacted in accordance with § 73 of the Constitution):
Acts concerning the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland:
Before 1917 (examples):
Fiji Parliament of Fiji:
France Parliament of France:
Germany Bundestag of Germany:
For acts which do not need the consent of the Bundesrat:
For acts which need the consent of the Bundesrat:
For acts which need an absolute majority and the consent of the Bundesrat:
For acts that change the Basic Law:
All laws conclude with the following formula before the place and date of signature, the signature of the federal president and the countersignatures of the federal chancellor and of the federal ministers responsible for the subject-matter of the law:
Ghana Parliament of Ghana:
Greece Normal lawmaking According to the current Constitution of Greece (since March, 1986) each law is approved by the Parliament and promulgated by the president of the Republic.
Before the first amendment of the current Constitution of Greeceenacted in June, 1975 (until March, 1986) each law had to be approved by the Parliament and then to be ratified and promulgated by the president of the republic.
Under the presidential parliamentary constitution of 1927 and since the Senate's formation in June 1929, each law had to be approved by the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate and then to be promulgated by the president of the republic.
While, until Senate's formation:
And during the Fourth National Assembly at Athens held between January 1924 and September 1925:
Also, during constitutional monarchy regime, under the constitutions of 1864 (as amended in 1911 and re-enacted in 1935) and 1952, each law had to be approved by both the Parliament and the king and then promulgated by the later.
Especially, under the constitution of 1844, each law had to be approved by the Chamber of Deputies, the Senate and the king and then promulgated by the last.
Lawmaking under the state of emergency In case of extremely urgent unforeseen situations, the Constitution grants the Greek government along with the president of the republic to issue legislative acts bypassing the parliamentary approval, to deal with urgent issues, provided that act to be later submitted for sanction in Parliament within forty days after either its promulgation or the parliamentary session convocation, to acquire legal power.
Under the previous presidential parliamentary constitutions, emergency laws and legislative decrees were enacted by the following clause: