Guidance

Guidance on the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme (FIRS): parliamentarians and targets of influence

Published 1 July 2025

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About this guidance

The Foreign Influence Registration Scheme (FIRS) is a two-tier scheme which ensures transparency of foreign influence in UK politics and provides greater assurance around the activities of certain foreign powers or foreign-power controlled entities that may pose a risk to the UK’s safety and other interests. It is contained within Part 4 of the National Security Act 2023.

Certain activities which seek to influence parliamentarians, UK Government ministers and other “senior public officials” will need to be registered under the scheme and will appear on a public register. This guidance provides further information for these individuals who may be the “targets” of political influence activities. For the purpose of this guidance, they are referred to as “targets of influence”.

Additional guidance is available on the political influence tier and the enhanced tier.

Chapter 1: About the scheme

1. The Foreign Influence Registration Scheme (FIRS) requires individuals and organisations to register where they form arrangements to carry out certain activities in the UK for foreign powers.

2. It contains two tiers:

• The political influence tier seeks to increase transparency of foreign power influence over our democracy. It requires the registration of arrangements with any foreign powers to carry out “political influence activities” in the UK.
• The enhanced tier provides greater assurance of the activities associated with the states that pose the greatest risk. It requires the registration of arrangements to carry out a wider range of activities in the UK, where these activities are directed by the foreign powers and foreign power-controlled entities which have been specified in regulations.

3. Registering under FIRS does not mean that an arrangement is illegitimate, or the activities are undesirable. In addition, it does not mean that the registrant needs to cease, or seek approval for, their activities.

Definition of “political influence activities”

4. Political influence activities include communications made to senior public officials or politicians (for example, emails or meetings), public communications (for example, the publication of an article) or disbursements (for example, the provision of money, goods or services) which are intended to influence one of the following:

• An election or referendum in the UK;
• A decision of a Minister or Government department (including a Minister or Government department of Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland);
• The proceedings of a UK registered political party (such as their manifesto commitments);
• A Member of the House of Commons, House of Lords, Northern Ireland Assembly, Scottish Parliament or Senedd Cymru.

5. Further detail on the requirements of the political influence tier can be found in the guidance on the political influence tier.

Chapter 2: Targets of influence

6. A “target of influence” is the person who is the target or recipient of a communication, public communication, or disbursement, which has been directed by a foreign power and which is intended to influence them or another political matter. The following are examples of political influence activities with a discernible target of influence.

a. A letter to a Minister (the target of influence) encouraging them to impose tougher regulations on a particular industry;

b. An article written about a Member of Parliament (the target of influence) seeking to persuade them to vote in a particular way in Parliament;

c. The offer of gifts to a Senior Civil Servant (the target of influence) intended to persuade them to increase the teaching of art and music in primary schools;

7. Schedule 14 of the National Security Act 2023 lists the individuals to whom communications may be considered political influence activities. They include, but are not limited to, ministers, MPs, senior civil servants, certain heads of local government, political party members, election candidates and senior police and military personnel.

Implications of a registration for a target of influence

8. FIRS does not place any reporting duties upon the targets or recipients of political influence activities. The scheme instead requires the person or persons being directed to make, or arrange, those communications or disbursements, to register their activity.

9. Being identifiable as a target of influence in a registration does not mean that the individual, or those seeking to influence them, are doing anything wrong. It is possible that the target of influence has not engaged with a registered communication, or accepted a registered disbursement.

10. Similarly, being named as a target of influence on a FIRS registration does not mean that a Parliamentarian needs to make an entry under the UK parliament register of interests, except where they have, for example, received a gift or hospitality that is registrable under the parliamentary rules. Further detail on the interactions between these registers can be found in the guidance on the information required at registration and the public register.

The public register

11. Information registered which relates to “political influence activities” will, by default, by included on a public register. The guidance on the information required at registration and the public register sets out the information that is required at registration, and the extent to which that information will be published on the public register.

12. Certain information about targets of influence will be published, unless an exception to publication applies: specifically, their role (for example, their job title, or the type of public office that they hold). The name of the target of influence will not be published.

13. It is possible that political influence activities could be targeted at a specific individual, or to a broad range of individuals. The information which is published will therefore depend on the circumstances. It is possible that the information published about a target of influence’s role could identify a specific individual; however it is also possible that the information published is a generic role held by multiple individuals.

Exceptions to publication

14. There are certain circumstances in which information will not be published. These circumstances are referred to “exceptions to publication” and are as follows:

• Exception 1: Where there is a risk that publication would prejudice the safety or interests of the UK.
• Exception 2: Where there is a risk that publication would prejudice the prevention or detection of crime, a criminal investigation or criminal proceedings;
• Exception 3: Where there is a significant risk that publication would put any individual’s safety seriously at risk.
• Exception 4: Where publication would involve the disclosure of commercially sensitive information.

15. Registrants will be asked at the end of the registration process if they believe that an exception to publication applies and, if so, they will be asked to provide evidence. It is also possible for other individuals (including targets of influence) to provide evidence to demonstrate that an exception to publication applies.

16. Further information about the circumstances in which exceptions to publication will be applied is set out in the guidance on the information required at registration and the public register.

Informing targets of influence of a relevant registration

17. “Targets of influence” will be able to check the public register to identify whether a person who is seeking to influence them has registered that they are acting at the direction of a foreign power.

18. Where it is reasonably practicable to do so, the FIRS Case Management Team in the Home Office will contact targets of influence in advance of publication in cases where they can be individually identified as a target of influence from the information to be published. As part of this communication, the Case Management Team will set out when the information will be published, which will be 5 working days following the communication to the target of influence. There is no need for targets of influence to respond to this communication or to take any action.