What Are the Pains and Penalties of Perjury?

A federal perjury conviction carries up to five years in prison plus a criminal fine, and the penalties for perjury extend well past the sentence itself: a felony record for dishonesty that can end a professional license, trigger deportation, and permanently bar firearm ownership. Because the courts rely on sworn testimony to function, judges and prosecutors treat the offense with a severity that catches many defendants off guard.

The Statutory Maximum

Both federal perjury statutes set the same ceiling. Under 18 U.S.C. § 1621 (general perjury) and 18 U.S.C. § 1623 (false declarations before a federal court or grand jury), a conviction is punishable by up to five years in federal prison and a fine.¹²

One exception raises that ceiling. False declarations made in proceedings before or connected to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court carry a maximum of ten years rather than five.²

What a Judge Is Likely to Impose

Statutory maximums are the ceiling, not the baseline. The sentence a judge actually hands down is driven by the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which assign perjury a base offense level of 14. For a first-time offender with no criminal history, that translates to a recommended range of 15 to 21 months in prison.³

From there, the number moves up with prior convictions and the enhancements described below. State-level perjury penalties sit alongside the federal scheme, with maximum fines ranging from roughly $1,000 to $25,000 depending on the jurisdiction.

Sentencing Enhancements That Push the Number Up

The Guidelines build in specific escalators that routinely push perjury sentences above the baseline.

If the false testimony caused “substantial interference with the administration of justice,” the offense level increases by three. The Guidelines define that phrase broadly to include causing an improper verdict, derailing a felony investigation, or forcing the government to burn significant resources chasing false leads.³

Threats take the enhancement much higher. If someone used threats of physical injury or property damage to coerce false testimony, the offense level jumps by eight.

When the perjury is tied to a serious underlying crime, a cross-reference can increase the number further. The Guidelines point to the accessory-after-the-fact calculation in those cases, so perjury connected to major drug trafficking, for example, may be sentenced more severely than standalone perjury because the underlying offense carries a high base level.⁴

Prosecutors can also request a separate two-level obstruction-of-justice enhancement under § 3C1.1 when the perjury occurred at trial. That enhancement does not stack with the perjury guideline itself unless the defendant also obstructed the investigation into the perjury charge.³

Convincing Someone Else to Lie

Pressuring or coaching another person to lie under oath is a separate federal crime called subornation of perjury, codified at 18 U.S.C. § 1622. The penalty is identical to perjury: up to five years in prison and a fine. A conviction requires the government to show the defendant procured another person to commit perjury and that the other person actually did so.⁵ The same enhancements that apply to perjury itself apply here, so using threats to coerce false testimony sharply increases the exposure.

Perjury Is Not Limited to Criminal Trials

A common mistake is assuming perjury only applies to witnesses in a criminal case. The federal statute covers any oath authorized by federal law, which includes depositions, affidavits filed with a court, and signed declarations in civil lawsuits. The criminal penalties are identical whether the lie came in a murder trial or a contract dispute.¹

Lying in a civil case also carries consequences inside the case. Courts have broad authority to sanction parties who submit false testimony, including dismissing claims, striking defenses built on fabricated evidence, imposing monetary sanctions, and holding the party in contempt. A false statement about income in a financial dispute or a fabricated claim in a custody fight does not just risk a perjury charge; it can cause the court to rule against the liar on the merits.

Civil perjury sometimes becomes the thread that pulls a bigger investigation into view. If the false testimony hints at fraud, conspiracy, or broader obstruction, prosecutors may pursue those charges as well. What began as an exaggeration in a deposition can expand into something much larger.

Collateral Consequences of a Conviction

For many defendants, the prison term and fine are not the worst part. Because perjury is a felony involving dishonesty, the collateral damage reaches into nearly every corner of a person’s life.

Professional Licenses and Employment

Licensing boards in law, medicine, accounting, and financial services treat a perjury conviction as a fundamental breach of professional ethics. Disbarment, license revocation, and denial of future applications are common outcomes. Outside licensed professions, employers running background checks routinely disqualify applicants with felony convictions, and a conviction specifically for lying under oath raises trust concerns that make professional recovery harder than it is for many other felonies.

Immigration Consequences

For non-citizens, perjury is classified as a “crime involving moral turpitude” under federal immigration law. That classification makes a person inadmissible to the United States, meaning they can be denied a visa or blocked from re-entering the country, and it can trigger removal proceedings for people already living here.⁶ The State Department’s consular guidance explicitly lists perjury among crimes involving moral turpitude, and an admission of the essential elements of perjury can be enough to trigger inadmissibility even without a formal conviction.⁷

Firearms

Federal law bars anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year of imprisonment from possessing firearms or ammunition. Because perjury carries a five-year maximum, a conviction triggers this lifetime ban.⁸

Voting Rights

Voting rights also take a hit, though the details depend on where you live. Some states automatically restore voting rights after release from prison, others require completion of parole or probation, and a handful impose indefinite disenfranchisement for certain felonies.

How Long the Government Has to Charge

Federal perjury charges must be brought within five years of the offense under the general federal statute of limitations for non-capital crimes. No special extension applies.⁹ The clock starts when the false statement is made, not when prosecutors discover it. If a grand jury investigation drags on for years before a lie surfaces, the five-year window may already have closed. For contradictory-declaration charges under § 1623, both statements must fall within the limitations period.²

1
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1621 – Perjury Generally
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1623 – False Declarations Before Grand Jury or Court
3
United States Sentencing Commission. USSG 2J1.3 – Perjury or Subornation of Perjury; Bribery of Witness
4
United States Department of Justice Archives. 1761 – Perjury Cases – Sentencing Issues
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1622 – Subornation of Perjury
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1182 – Inadmissible Aliens
7
Department of State Foreign Affairs Manual. 9 FAM 302.3 – Ineligibility Based on Criminal Activity
8
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts
9
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3282 – Offenses Not Capital