The F. I. D. E. Laws Of Chess
Preface
-------
The Laws of Chess cannot cover all possible situations that
may arise during a game, nor can they regulate all administrative
questions. Where cases are not precisely regulated by an Article
of the Laws, it should be possible to reach a correct decision by
studying analogous situations which are discussed in the Laws.
The Laws assume arbiters have the necessary competence,
sound judgment and absolute objectivity. Too detailed a rule
might deprive the arbiter of his freedom of judgment and thus
prevent him from finding the solution to a problem dictated
by fairness, logic and special factors.
F.I.D.E. appeals to all chess players and federations to accept
this view. Any chess federation that already operates, or wants to
introduce, more detailed rules is free to do so, provided:
(a) they do not conflict in any way with the official
F.I.D.E. Laws of Chess;
(b) they are limited to the territory of the federation in
question; and
(c) they are not valid for any F.I.D.E. match, championship,
or qualifying event, or to a F.I.D.E. title or rating tournament.
In the Articles of these Laws, "he", "him" and "his" can refer to
"she", "her" and "hers".
Article 1: The Chessboard
---------- --------------
The game of chess is played between two opponents by moving pieces
on a square board called a "chessboard".
1.1 The chessboard is composed of 64 equal squares, alternately light
(the "white" squares) and dark (the "black" squares).
1.2 The chessboard is placed between the players in such a way that
the near corner to the right of each player is white.
1.3 The eight vertical rows of squares are called "files".
1.4 The eight horizontal rows of squares are called "ranks".
1.5 The lines of squares of the same colour, touching corner to corner,
are called "diagonals".
Article 2: The Pieces
---------- ----------
2.1 At the beginning of the game, one player has 16 light-coloured
pieces (the "white" pieces), the other has 16 dark-coloured
pieces (the "black" pieces.
2.2 These pieces are as follows:
A white king: K A black king: k
A white queen: Q A black queen: q
Two white rooks: R Two black rooks: r
Two white knights: N Two black knights: n
Two white bishops: B Two black bishops: b
Eight white pawns: P Eight black pawns: p
2.3 The initial position of the pieces on the chessboard is as follows:
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| r |.n.| b |.q.| k |.b.| n |.r.| -- this square is "black"
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|.p.| p |.p.| p |.p.| p |.p.| p |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |...| |...| |...| |...|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|...| |...| |...| |...| |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |...| |...| |...| |...|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|...| |...| |...| |...| |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P |.P.| P |.P.| P |.P.| P |.P.|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|.R.| N |.B.| Q |.K.| B |.N.| R | -- this square is "white"
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Article 3: The Right To Move
---------- -----------------
3.1 The player with the white pieces commences the game. The players
alternate in making one move at a time until the game is completed.
3.2 A player is said to "have the move" when his opponent's move
has been completed.
Article 4: The General Definition Of The Move
---------- ----------------------------------
4.1 With the exception of castling (Article 5.1(b)), a move is the
transfer by a player of one of his pieces from one square to
another square, which is either vacant or occupied by an opponent's
piece.
[A capture is, therefore, merely a certain type of move.]
4.2 No piece, except the rook when castling (Article 5.1(b)) and the
knight (Article 5.5), may cross a square occupied by another piece.
4.3 A piece played to a square occupied by an opponent's piece captures
it as part of the same move. The captured piece must be removed
immediately from the chessboard by the player making the capture
(see Article 5.6(c) for capturing "en passant").
Article 5: The Moves Of The Pieces
---------- -----------------------
5.1 The King:
(a) Except when castling, the king moves to any adjoining square
that is not attacked by an opponent's piece.
(b) Castling is a move of the king and either rook, counting as a
single move of the king and executed as follows: the king is
transferred from its original square two squares toward either
rook on the same rank; then that rook is transferred over the
king to the square the king has just crossed.
(c) If a player touches a rook and then his king, he may not castle
with that rook and the situation will by governed by Articles
7.2 and 7.3 [Touched Piece rules].
(d) If a player, intending to castle, touches the king first, or
king and rook at the same time, and it then appears that castling
is illegal, the player may choose either to move his king or to
castle on the other side, provided that castling on that side is
legal. If the king has no legal move, the player is free to make
any legal move.
(e) Castling is [permanently] illegal:
(i) if the king has already been moved; or
(ii) with a rook that has already been moved.
(f) Castling is prevented for the time being:
(i) if the king's original square, or the square which the king
must pass over, or that which it is to occupy, is attacked
by an opponent's piece; or
(ii) if there is any piece between the king and the rook with
which castling is to be effected [i.e. castling may still
be legal even if the rook is attacked or, when castling
queenside, passes over an attacked square] .
5.2 The Queen.
The queen moves to any square (except as limited by Article 4.2)
[No leapfrogging] on the file, rank, or diagonals on which it stands.
5.3 The Rook.
The rook moves to any square (except as limited by Article 4.2) on the
file or rank on which it stands.
5.4 The Bishop.
The bishop moves to any square (except as limited by Article 4.2) on
the diagonals on which it stands.
5.5 The Knight.
The knight's move is composed of two different steps; first, it makes
one step of one single square along its rank or file, and then, still
moving away from the square of departure, one step of one single
square on a diagonal. It does not matter if the square of the first
step is occupied.
5.6 The Pawn.
(a) The pawn may move only forward [except as limited by Article 4.2].
(b) Except when making a capture, it advances from its original
square either one or two vacant squares along the file on which
it is placed, and on subsequent moves it advances one vacant
square along the file. When capturing, it advances one square
along either of the diagonals on which it stands.
(c) A pawn, attacking a square crossed by an opponent's pawn which
has [just] been advanced two squares in one move from its
original square, may capture this opponent's pawn as though the
latter had been moved only one square. This capture may only be
made in [immediate] reply to such an advance, and is called an
"en passant" capture.
(d) On reaching the last rank, a pawn must immediately be exchanged,
as part of the same move, for [either] a queen, a rook, a bishop,
or a knight, of the same colour as the pawn, at the player's
choice and without taking into account the other pieces still
remaining on the chessboard. This exchange of a pawn for another
piece is called "promotion", and the effect of the promoted
piece is immediate [and permanent!].
(e) In a competition, if a new piece required for the promotion is
not immediately available, the player may stop his clock to ask
for the assistance of the arbiter. The player must complete his
move correctly, in the manner specified in Article 5.6(d).
Article 6: The Completion Of The Move
---------- --------------------------
A move is completed:
6.1 in the case of the transfer of a piece to a vacant square, when
the player's hand has released the piece;
6.2 in the case of a capture, when the captured piece has been removed
from the chessboard and the player, having placed his own piece on
its new square, has released this [capturing] piece from his hand;
6.3 in the case of castling, when the player's hand has released the
rook on the square [previously] crossed by the king. When the player
has released the king from his hand, the move is not yet completed,
but the player no longer has the right to make any move other than
castling on that side, if this is legal;
6.4 in the case of the promotion of a pawn, when the pawn has been
removed from the chessboard and the player's hand has released the
new piece after placing it on the promotion square. If the player
has released from his hand the pawn that has reached the promotion
square, the move is not yet completed, but the player no longer has
the right to play the pawn to another square.
6.5 When determining whether the prescribed number of moves has been made
in the allotted time, the last move is not considered complete until
after the player has stopped his clock. This applies to all situations
except those governed by Articles 10.1, 10.2, 10.3, 10.4 and 10.6.
[i.e. when the move has been completed in the sense of Articles 6.1-6.4,
and the game ends immediately after the move in question, which may,
for example, put the player's opponent into checkmate. This Law was
introduced to prevent the situation where a player returns to the board
to claim a win on time, possibly an hour after being checkmated!] .
Article 7: The Touched Piece
---------- -----------------
7.1 Provided that he first expresses his intention (e.g. by saying
"j'adoube"), the player having the move may adjust one or more pieces
on their squares.
[If a player's opponent is absent from the chessboard, it is best to
inform one of his team-mates, or some other witness.]
7.2 Except for the above case, if the player having the move deliberately
touches on the board:
(a) one or more pieces of the same colour, he must move or capture
the first piece he touched that can be moved or captured; or
(b) one of his own pieces and one of his opponent's pieces, he must
capture his opponent's piece with his own piece; or, if this is
illegal, move or capture the first piece he touched that can be
moved or captured. If it is impossible to establish which piece
was touched first, the player's piece shall be considered the
touched piece.
7.3 If none of the touched pieces has a legal move (or if none of the
opponent's pieces which were touched can be captured legally), the
player is free to make any legal move.
7.4 If a player wishes to claim that his opponent has violated Article
7.2, he must do so before he himself touches a piece.
[Note that the clause "deliberately touches" protects a player from
having to move a piece accidentally touched by his elbow/wrist etc]
Article 8: Illegal Positions
---------- -----------------
8.1 If, during a game, it is found that an illegal move was made, the
position shall be reinstated to what it was before the illegal move
was made. The game shall then continue by applying the rules of
Article 7 to the move replacing the illegal move. If the position
cannot be reinstated, the game shall be annulled and a new game
played. This applies to all sessions of play, and to a game awaiting
a decision by adjudication.
[Note that this discovery of an illegal move must be made while the
game is still in progress, before resignation or the agreement of a
draw. The only possible exception can be if the illegal move itself
would theoretically end the game: anyone trying the trick 1. e2-e4
e7-e5; 2. Bf1-c4 Ng8-f6; 3. Qd1xf7 "mate" may be penalised under
Article 10.17! Note that the act of playing an illegal move, at ANY
stage of the game, does not IN ITSELF forfeit the game.]
8.2 If, during a game, one or more pieces have been accidentally
displaced and incorrectly replaced, the position before the
displacement occurred shall be reinstated, and the game shall
continue. If the position cannot be reinstated, the game shall be
annulled and a new game played.
8.3 If a player moves and in the course of this inadvertently knocks
over a piece, or several pieces, he must re-establish the position
in his own time.
8.4 If, after an adjournment, the position is incorrectly set up, the
position as it was on adjournment must be set up again and the game
continued.
8.5 If, during a game, it is found that the initial position of the
pieces was incorrect, the game shall be annulled and a new game played.
8.6 If a game has begun with colours incorrectly reversed, then it shall
continue if more than one quarter of the time allocated to both
players to the first time control has elapsed. Earlier, the arbiter
can arrange for a new game to start with the correct colours, if the
event's timetable is not excessively disrupted.
8.7 If, during a game, it is found that the board has been placed contrary
to Article 1.2, the position reached should be transferred to a
correctly-placed board, and the game continued.
[In the situations covered by Articles 8.5-8.7, a spectator is
justified in pointing out to the arbiter the error he has noticed.
In Article 8.7, the implicit assumption is that the relative
positions of the pieces relative to one another were correct] .
Article 9: Check
---------- -----
9.1 The king is in "check" when the square it occupies is attacked by
one or more of the opponent's pieces; in this case, the latter is/are
said to be "checking" the king. A player may not make a move which
leaves his king on a square attacked by any of his opponent's pieces.
9.2 Check must be parried by the move immediately following. If any check
cannot be parried, the king is said to be "checkmated" ("mated").
9.3 Declaring a check is not obligatory.
[Merely polite! Playing an illegal move does not imply the loss of
the game: see Article 8.1.]
Article 10: The Completed Game
----------- ------------------
10.1 The game is won by the player who has checkmated his opponent's
king. This immediately ends the game.
10.2 The game is won by the player whose opponent declares he resigns.
This immediately ends the game.
10.3 The game is drawn when the king of the player who has the move is
not in check, and this player cannot make any legal move. The player's
king is then said to be "stalemated". This immediately ends the game.
[If the stalemating move was actually legal!] .
10.4 The game is drawn when one of the following endings arises:
(a) king against king;
(b) king against king with only bishop or knight;
(c) king and bishop against king and bishop, with both bishops
on diagonals of the same colour.
This immediately ends the game.
10.5 A player having a bare king cannot win the game. A draw shall be
declared if the opponent of a player with a bare king oversteps the
time limit (Articles 10.13 and 10.14) or seals an illegal move
(Articles 10.16).
10.6 The game is drawn upon agreement between the two players. This
immediately ends the game.
10.7 A proposal of a draw under the provisions of Article 10.6 may be
made by a player only at the moment when he has just moved a piece.
On then proposing a draw, he starts the clock of his opponent. The
latter may accept the proposal, which is always to be taken as
unconditional, or he may reject it either orally or by completing a
move. A draw offer is valid until the opponent has accepted or
rejected it.
[The gamesmanship question "Are you playing for a win?" can be
considered as an offer of a draw] .
10.8 If a player proposes a draw while his opponent's clock is running
and his opponent is contemplating his move, the opponent may still
agree to the draw or reject the offer. A player who offers a draw
in this manner may be penalised by the arbiter.
10.9 If a player proposes a draw while his own clock is running or after
his move has been sealed, the opponent may postpone his decision
until after he has seen the first player's move.
10.10 The game is drawn, upon a claim by the player having the move, when
the same position, for the third time:
(a) is about to appear, if he first writes the move on his scoresheet
and declares to the arbiter his intention of making this move; or
(b) has just appeared, the same player having the move each time.
The position is considered the same if pieces of the same kind and
colour occupy the same squares, and if all the possible moves of all
the pieces are the same, including the rights to castle [at some
future time] or to capture a pawn "en passant".
10.11 If a player executes a move without having claimed a draw for one
of the reasons stated in Article 10.10, he loses the right to claim
a draw. This right is restored to him, however, if the same position
[later] appears again, the same player having the move.
10.12 The game is drawn when a player having the move claims a draw and
demonstrates that at least [the last?] 50 consecutive moves have been
made by each side without the capture of any piece and without the
movement of any pawn. This number of 50 moves can be increased for
certain positions, provided that this increase in number and these
positions have been clearly announced by the organisers before the
event starts.
[The claim then proceeds according to 10.13. The most extreme case
yet known of a position which might take more than 50 moves to win is
king, rook and bishop against king and two knights, which can run for
223 moves between captures!]
10.13 If a player claims a draw under the provisions of Articles 10.10
and/or 10.12, the arbiter must first stop the clocks while the claim
is being investigated. In the absence of the arbiter, a player may
stop both clocks to seek the arbiter's assistance.
(a) If the claim is found to be correct, the game is drawn.
(b) If the claim is found to be incorrect, the arbiter shall then
add five minutes to the claimant's used time. If this means that
the claimant has [now] overstepped the time limit, his game will
be declared lost. Otherwise, the game will be continued, and a
player who has indicated a move according to Article 10.10(a) is
obliged to execute this move on the chessboard.
(c) A player who has made a claim under these Articles cannot
withdraw the claim.
10.14 The game is lost by a player who has not completed the prescribed
number of moves in the allotted time, unless his opponent has only
the king remaining, in which case the game is drawn. (See Articles 6.5
and 10.5.)
[Situations when Articles 10.1-10.4 or 10.6 apply are the only other
exceptions.]
10.15 The game is lost by a player who arrives at the chessboard more than
one hour late, for the beginning of the game or for the resumption of
an adjourned game. The time of delay is counted from the [scheduled]
start of the playing session. However, in the case of an adjourned
game, if the player who made the sealed move is the late player, the
game is decided otherwise if:
(a) the absent player has won the game by virtue of the fact that
the sealed move is checkmate; or
(b) the absent player has produced a drawn game by virtue of the
fact that the sealed move is stalemate, or if one of the
positions in Article 10.4 has arisen as a consequence of the
sealed move; or
(c) the player present at the chessboard has lost the game according
to Article 10.14 by exceeding his time limit.
10.16 At the resumption, the game is lost by a player whose recording
of his sealed move:
(a) is ambiguous; or
(b) would result in a false move the true significance of which is
impossible to establish; or
(c) would result in an illegal move.
10.17 The game is lost by a player who, during the game, refuses to comply
with the Laws. If both players refuse to comply with the Laws, or if
both players arrive at the chessboard more than one hour late, the
game shall be declared lost by both players.
Article 11: The Recording Of Games
----------- ----------------------
11.1 In the course of play, each player is required to record the game
(his own moves and those of his opponent), move after move, as
clearly and legibly as possible in the Algebraic Notation, on the
scoresheet prescribed for the competition. It is irrelevant whether
the player first makes his move and then records it, or vice versa.
[The use of Descriptive Notation or foreign versions of Algebraic
Notation is tolerated in internal tournaments, e.g. weekend
congresses.]
11.2 If a player has less than five minutes on his clock until the time
control, he is not obliged to meet the requirements of Article 11.1.
As soon as the special device (e.g. the flag) on the clock indicates
the end of his allotted time, the player must immediately complete
his record of the game by filling in the moves omitted from his
scoresheet.
[A player may be justified in restarting his opponent's clock,
without having to make a move, if his opponent has more than 5 minutes
left and is not fulfilling the requirements of Article 11.1. A player
cannot stop his clock unless he has recorded at least his opponent's
last move and all previous moves of the game.]
11.3 If both players cannot keep score, the arbiter, or his deputy, must
endeavour to be present and keep score. The arbiter must not intervene
unless one flag falls, and until then he should not indicate in any
manner to the players how many moves have been made.
11.4 If Article 11.2 does not apply, and a player refuses to record the
game according to Article 11.1, then Article 10.17 should be applied
[Failure to comply with the Laws of Chess].
11.5 If a player does not refuse to comply with the arbiter's request for
a completed scoresheet, but declares that he cannot complete his
scoresheet without consulting his opponent's, the request for this
scoresheet must be made to the arbiter, who will determine whether
the scoresheet can be completed before the time-control without
inconveniencing the other player. The latter cannot refuse his
scoresheet, because the scoresheet belongs to the organisers and the
reconstruction will be made in his opponent's time. In all other
cases, the scoresheets can be completed only after the time-control.
11.6 If, after the time-control, one player alone has to complete his
scoresheet, he will do so before making another move, and with his
clock running if his opponent has moved.
11.7 If, after the time-control, both players need to complete their
scoresheets, both clocks will be stopped until the two scoresheets
are completed, if necessary with the help of the arbiter's scoresheet
and/or a chessboard under the control of the arbiter, who should have
recorded the actual game position beforehand.
[In case this position gets disturbed!]
11.8 If, in Article 11.6, the arbiter sees that the scoresheets alone cannot
help in the reconstruction of the game, he will act as in Article 11.7.
11.9 If it proves impossible to reconstruct the moves as prescribed under
Article 11.7, the game shall continue. In this case, the next move
played will be considered to be the first one of the following
time-control.
Article 12: The Chess Clock
----------- ---------------
12.1 Each player must make a certain number of moves in an allotted period
of time, these two factors being specified in advance. The time saved
by a player during one period is added to his time available for the
next period.
12.2 Control of each player's time is effected by means of a clock
equipped with a flag (or other special device) for this purpose.
The flag is considered to have fallen when the arbiter observes
the fact, or when the arbiter determines that the allotted time
has been exceeded, even though the flag, because of a defect,
has not fallen when the end of the minute hand has passed the
end of the flag. In cases where no arbiter is present, the flag
is considered to have fallen when a claim to that effect has been
made by a player.
12.3 At the time determined for the start of the game, the clock of the
player who has the white pieces is started. During the game, each
of the players, having completed his move, stops his own clock and
starts his opponent's clock.
12.4 Every indication given by a clock is considered to be conclusive
in the absence of evident defects. A player who wishes to claim
any such defect must do so as soon as he himself has become aware
of it, but not later than immediately after his flag has fallen
at the time-control. A clock with an obvious defect should be
replaced, and the time used by each player up to the time the
game was interrupted should be indicated on the new clock as
accurately as possible. The arbiter shall use his best judgment
in determining what times shall be shown on the new clock. If
the arbiter decides to add time used to the clock of one or both
of the players, he shall under no circumstances (except as provided
for in Article 10.13(b)) leave a player with:
(a) less than five minutes to the time-control; or
(b) less than one minute for every move to the time-control.
12.5 If the game needs to be interrupted for some reason which requires
action by the arbiter, the clocks shall be stopped by the arbiter.
This should be done, for example, in the case of an illegal position
being corrected, in the case of a defective clock being changed, or
if the piece which a player has declared he wishes to exchange for
a promoted pawn is not immediately available, or to claim a draw by
repetitions of position or under the 50 moves rule. If the arbiter
is not present, a player may stop both clocks in order to seek the
arbiter's assistance.
12.6 In the case of Articles 8.1 and 8.2 [Illegal Positions], when it is
not possible to determine the exact time used by each player up to
the moment when the irregularity occurred, each player shall be
allotted up to that moment a time proportional to that indicated by
the clock when the irregularity was ascertained.
For example, after Black's 30th move it is found that an irregularity
took place at the 20th move. For these 30 moves, the clock shows 90
minutes for White and 60 minutes for Black, so it is assumed that the
times used by the two players for the first 20 moves were as follows:
for White: 90 x 20/30 = 60 minutes
for Black: 60 x 20/30 = 40 minutes
This rule must not be used to leave a player with less than five
minutes to the time control, or less than one minute for every move
to the time control. (The most common occasion when this problem
arises is immediately after an adjournment, when the clock times can
be most easily adjusted using the times on the sealed move envelope.)
12.7 A resignation or an agreement to draw (Articles 10.2 and 10.4)
remains valid even if it is found later that a flag had fallen.
12.8 If both flags have fallen at virtually the same time [or if both
have fallen before a claim is made by either player] and the arbiter
is unable to establish clearly which flag fell first, the game shall
continue. In this case, if the scoresheets cannot be brought up to
date showing that the time control has been passed, the next move
played will be considered to be the first one of the following
time-control.
12.9 The arbiter [and everyone else, for that matter] shall refrain from
calling a player's attention to the fact that his opponent has made a
move or that the player has forgotten to stop his clock after he has
made a move, or informing the player how many moves he has made, etc.
Article 13: The Adjournment Of The Game
----------- ---------------------------
13.1 (a) If a game is not finished at the end of the time prescribed
for play, the player having the move must write his move in
unambiguous notation on his scoresheet, put his scoresheet and
that of his opponent in an envelope, seal the envelope, and
only then stop his clock without starting his opponent's clock.
Until he has stopped the clocks, the player retains the right
to change his sealed move. If, after being told by the arbiter
to seal his move, the player makes a move on the chessboard, he
must write that same move on his scoresheet as his sealed move.
(b) A player having the move who adjourns the game before the end
of the playing session will have added to the used time on his
clock the whole of the remaining time to the end of the session.
13.2 Upon the envelope shall be indicated:
(a) the names of the players;
(b) the position immediately before the sealed move;
(c) the time used by each player;
(d) the name of the player who has sealed the move; and
(e) the number of the sealed move.
13.3 The arbiter is responsible for the safekeeping of the envelope
and should check the accuracy of the information on it.
Article 14: The Resumption of the Adjourned Game
----------- ------------------------------------
14.1 When the game is resumed, the position immediately before the sealed
move shall be set up on the chessboard, and the time used by each
player when the game was adjourned shall be indicated on the clocks.
14.2 The envelope shall be opened only when the player who must reply to
the sealed move is present. This player's clock shall be started
after the sealed move has been made on the chessboard.
(a) If two players have agreed to a draw and announce their decision
to the arbiter; or
(b) if one of the players in an adjourned game notifies the arbiter
that he resigns and it is found, when the envelope has been
opened, that the sealed move is invalid according to Article
10.16, then in (a) the draw stands and in (b) the resignation
is still valid.
14.3 If the player having to respond to the sealed move is absent, his
clock shall be started but the envelope containing the sealed move
shall be opened only when he arrives. The player's clock shall then
be stopped and restarted after the sealed move has been played on
the chessboard.
14.4 If the player who has sealed the move is absent, the player having
the move is not obliged to reply to the sealed move on the chessboard.
He has the right to record his move in reply on his scoresheet, to
seal the scoresheet in an envelope, to stop his clock and start his
opponent's clock. The envelope should then be put into safekeeping
and opened on the opponent's arrival.
14.5 If the envelope containing the move recorded in accordance with
Article 13 has disappeared:
(a) the game shall be resumed from the position at the time of
adjournment and with the clock times recorded at the time of
adjournment;
(b) if it is impossible to re-establish the position, the game is
annulled and a new game must be played;
(c) if the time used at the time of the adjournment cannot be
re-established, this question is decided by the arbiter. The
player who sealed the move makes it on the board.
14.6 If, upon resumption of the game, the time used has been incorrectly
indicated on either clock, and if either player points this out
before making his first move, the error must be corrected. If the
error is not so established, the game continues without correction,
unless the arbiter feels that the consequences will be too severe.
14.7 The duration of each resumption session shall be controlled by the
wall clock, with the starting time and the finishing time announced
in advance.
Article 15: The Conduct Of The Players
----------- --------------------------
15.1 Prohibitions:
(a) During play, the players are forbidden to make use of
hand-written, printed or otherwise recorded matter, or to
analyse the game on another chessboard. They are also forbidden
to have recourse to the advice of a third party, whether
solicited or not.
[The only possible exception is that a player in a team
competition may be allowed to ask his captain "Should I accept
his offer of a draw?" or "Does the team need me to play for a
win?". The captain or acting-captain must limit his reply to an
immediate "Yes", "No", or "It's up to you", without supplying
his answer after a detailed analysis of the position, and without
making his answer emphatic in any way. This captain, like all his
players, is not allowed to receive opinions, from any source, on
the states of play of any games still in progress] .
(b) The use of notes made during the game as an aid to memory is
also forbidden, aside from the actual recording of the moves
and the times on the clocks.
(c) No analysis is permitted in the playing rooms during play or
during resumption sessions.
(d) It is forbidden to distract or annoy the opponent in any manner
whatsoever. This includes the persistent offering of a draw.
15.2 Infractions of the rules indicated in Article 15.1 may incur penalties
even to the extent of the loss of the game (see Article 16.5).
Article 16: The Arbiter
----------- -----------
An arbiter should be designated to control the competition. His
duties are:
16.1 to see that the Laws are strictly observed;
16.2 to supervise the progress of the competition, to establish that the
prescribed time-limit has not been exceeded by the players, to arrange
the order of resumption of play of adjourned games, to see that the
arrangements contained in Article 13 are observed (i.e. to see that
the information on the envelope is correct), to keep the sealed-move
envelope until the resumption of the adjourned game, etc;
16.3 to enforce the decisions he may make in disputes that have arisen
during the course of the competition;
16.4 to act in the best interests of the competition to ensure that a good
playing environment is maintained and that the players are not
disturbed by each other or by the audience;
16.5 to impose penalties on the players for any fault or infraction of
the Laws. These penalties may include a warning, a time penalty
(by adding to the player's used time or to his opponent's unused time)
or even the loss of the game.
Article 17: Scoring
----------- -------
For a won game, the winner gets 1 (one) point and the loser 0 (zero).
For a draw, each player gets (half) a point.
Article 18: The Interpretation of the Laws
----------- ------------------------------
In case of doubts as to the application or interpretation of the Laws,
F.I.D.E. will examine the evidence and render official decisions.
Rulings published are binding on all affiliated federations. All
proposals and questions about interpretations should be submitted by
member federations, with complete data.
Article 19: Validity
----------- --------
This English text is slightly modified from the authentic version
of the Laws of chess, as adopted by the 1984 F.I.D.E. Congress, and
subsequently amended by the 1988 and 1992 F.I.D.E. Congresses. These
Laws took effect from 1 January 1993.