Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Related legal acts

Key definition

Forgery definition

What does Forgery mean? In practice, forgery refers to dealing with false instruments: making or materially altering a document so it purports to be genuine, copying a false instrument, using a false instrument or a copy, and having custody or control of specified false instruments, machines or materials for making them, with intent that the instrument be accepted as genuine to another’s prejudice. In England and Wales, these offences are created by the Forgery and Counterfeiting Act 1981, ss 1–5, which define “false instrument” broadly (including, where provided, electronic records). Northern Ireland has materially similar provisions under the Forgery and Counterfeiting (Northern...

Forgery under the Forgery and Counterfeiting Act 1981 (England and Wales): elements; offences of making, copying and using false instruments; penalties and jurisdiction

Published by a LexisNexis Corporate Crime expert

Practice notes

Offence of making a False instrument

Under section 1 of the FCA 1981, a person commits Forgery if they create a false instrument intending that they, or someone else, will use it to persuade another to treat it as authentic, and, because of that acceptance, to act or refrain from acting to their own or another’s detriment.

For all offences in the FCA 1981, section 8 explains what counts as an “instrument”. It covers:

any document;
postal stamps and Inland Revenue stamps;
disks, tapes, sound tracks; and
any other device on or in which information is recorded or stored by mechanical, electronic, or other means.

The FCA 1981 does not define “document”, but currency notes are excluded, as these fall under counterfeiting offences in Part II of the FCA 1981 (see Practice Note: Counterfeiting notes and coins). Electronic impulses used as computer access passwords are not instruments; therefore, Hacking or password misuse is not forgery but instead an offence under the Computer Misuse Act 1990 (see Practice Note: Computer hacking and misuse under the Computer Misuse Act)...

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Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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