Legal notices


I.Copyright and Usage

Effective: December 30, 2014
The International Monetary Fund (the “IMF”) maintains websites (the “Sites”) to provide direct access to its information, documents, data and materials (collectively, “Content”) to those who choose to access and use the Sites (the “Users”). The IMF maintains the Sites for informational purposes only.

Some Content available on the Sites, in particular statistical data produced by the IMF and not owned by another third party, is subject to special terms of use, which are set out below.

Usage of the IMF's websites constitutes agreement with the following terms and conditions:

II.Personal, Noncommercial Usage

The IMF grants permission to visit its Sites and to download and copy information, documents, and materials from the Sites for personal, noncommercial usage only, without any right to resell or redistribute or to compile or create derivative works, subject to these Terms and Conditions of Usage and also subject to more specific restrictions that may apply to particular information within the Sites. Any rights not expressly granted herein are reserved.

III.General Terms and Conditions of Usage

Except as outlined below, all rights are reserved.The IMF's general copyright and usage policies are all outlined here, including policies concerning the granting of permission for the use of our Sites; how to obtain permission for copying, reusing, or disseminating our print and digital content for commercial and noncommercial purposes; and the “fair use” of our content, for example, by journalists for news reporting purposes.

 Except as outlined below, all rights are reserved.

  • Creating links to our website is freely permitted, so long as this is done in a manner that is not misleading, e.g., does not imply endorsement by or affiliation with the IMF. Please inform IMF Webmaster when such links are created. Due to frequent updates and ongoing modifications, please do not copy publications from the IMF's website for reproduction on a non-IMF website. Instead, please create links to items on IMF Sites.
  • The IMF freely authorizes downloading and/or reprinting files from its website for personal (noncommercial) use. For commercial uses of the content on this website, please see below.
  • Permission to photocopy, reprint/republish, or disseminate IMF content (print, online, multimedia, etc.) by universities, corporations, and other institutional users must be obtained by submitting an online Request for Copyright Permission Form. A PDF version of the IMF form is also available (69kb), which can be faxed to +1.202.623.6579.
  • IMF Sites may contain content and data from third-party publishers. For use of non-IMF material, please obtain permission directly from the respective copyright owner.
  • For convenience, universities, corporations, and many other institutional users may also obtain permissions for a variety of print and digital purposes for most IMF print content via the Copyright Clearance Center (CCC) at www.copyright.com
  • “Fair use” of IMF published content is considered the excerption or quoting of IMF content by individuals (e.g., academics, journalists, students, IMF country authorities, etc.) for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research, in which the individual’s use is for non-commercial purposes. Such “fair use” is freely authorized for up to 2,500 words from any one source. The IMF requests in such cases that individuals provide a complete citation to clearly identify the source(s) of the excerpted/quoted IMF material to their readers.
  • If you believe your plans will exceed “fair use” as understood above (or you are unsure), please submit a permission request via one of the options noted above.

In order to access certain portions and features of the Sites, Users may have to create a “username” and complete a process to register an account. Users agree to provide accurate, current, and complete information as prompted by the Sites’ registration forms. Users also agree to update account information in order to keep it current and accurate. Users are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of account passwords and usernames and are fully responsible for all activities that occur under their password or username.

IV. Privacy

See the Privacy Policy disclosures relating to the collection and use of personal information.

V. Disclaimers

The information on our Site is provided “as is” and without warranty of any kind, either express or implied, including, without limitation, warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and noninfringement.

The IMF shall not be liable for any losses or damages incurred or suffered which are claimed to result from use of our Site, including, without limitation, any direct, indirect, incidental, special, or consequential damages, even if the IMF has been advised of the possibility of such damages.

Except where expressly stated, the findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in the Materials on IMF Sites represent the views of the authors thereof and are not necessarily those of the IMF or of its Management, Executive Board, or member countries. The IMF does not endorse the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any information provided on IMF Sites by third parties or of any information in third-party websites and publications that may be linked to IMF Sites or referred to within them. Reliance upon any such Materials shall be at the User’s own risk.

All postings to forums on the Sites become the sole property of the IMF, which reserves the right to modify or remove them. The IMF shall have no obligation to review or screen any postings, but postings to moderated forums may not appear on the Sites until after approval by the moderator. Postings to IMF Sites, whether approved by a moderator or not, are not endorsed by the IMF. Visitors shall use forums on IMF Sites solely for lawful and ethical purposes related to the subject of each particular forum.

IMF Sites may include content that has been translated from English or to English. While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of translations, the version of any document used by the IMF is the English version, as American English is the working language of the IMF.

The IMF does not represent or warrant that it owns or controls all rights in all Materials and accepts no liability for any claims brought against Users by third parties in connection with use of Materials on the Sites.

Users may not represent or imply that the IMF is participating in, or has sponsored, approved or endorsed the manner or purpose of any use of its Materials by User. Use of the IMF logos and official emblems is strictly prohibited without prior written approval of the IMF.

The IMF reserves the right in its sole discretion, without notice or obligation to take the needs of any User into consideration, to modify or terminate its Sites and to deny any User access to its Sites or any portion thereof, subject to the terms of any separate subscription agreement in effect.

VI. Preservation of Immunities

The IMF, its property, and its assets, are immune from every form of judicial process. Nothing herein shall constitute a limitation upon or a waiver of these and other privileges and immunities of the IMF, which are specifically reserved.

These Terms of Usage constitute the entire agreement between the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof. No waiver or amendment of these Terms of Usage shall be binding upon the IMF unless in writing and signed by its duly authorized representative.

These Terms of Usage will be interpreted in accordance with the laws of the District of Columbia (DC), United States of America.

VII. SPECIAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS PERTAINING TO THE USE OF DATA

Use of published statistical data which is made available through the IMF Sites shall be subject to the following special terms. For the purposes of these special terms, the term “Data” refers to any published statistical data produced by the IMF that is not owned by a third-party. In particular, “Data” refers to the following:

  • IMF E-library Data , including but not limited to, International Financial Statistics (IFS), Balance of Payments (BOP), Direction of Trade (DOT), and Government Finance Statistics (GFS);
  • World Economic Outlook database;
  • Primary Commodity Prices
  • ;IMF Financial Data;
  • Exchange Rate Data; and
  • Any other statistical data available on www.imf.org that explicitly identify the InternationalMonetary Fund as the source.

The policy of free access and free reuse does not imply a right to obtain confidential or any unpublished underlying data, over which the IMF reserves all rights. Notwithstanding the general prohibition on the commercial use of IMF content, Users may download, extract, copy, create derivative works, publish, distribute, and sell Data obtained from IMF Sites, subject to the following conditions:

  • When Data is distributed or reproduced, it must appear accurately and attributed to the IMF as the source, e.g. “Source: International Monetary Fund.”
  • This source attribution requirement is attached to any use of IMF Data, whether obtained directly from the IMF or from a User.
  • Users who make IMF Data available to other users through any type of distribution or download environment agree to take reasonable efforts to communicate and promote compliance by their End Users with these terms.
  • The Data is provided to Users “as is” and without warranty of any kind, either express or implied, including, without limitation, warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and noninfringement.
  • If IMF Data is sold by Users as a standalone product; sellers must inform purchasers that the Data is available free of charge from the IMF.
  • Users shall not infringe upon the integrity of the Data and in particular shall refrain from any act of alteration of the Data that intentionally affects its nature or accuracy. If the Data is materially transformed by the User, this must be stated explicitly along with the required source citation.

All other terms set forth in the general terms and conditions shall continue to apply to use of IMF Data.