Commissions constitute the giving of a financial advantage. Not all commissions will be bribes. The most common occurrence of a commission is where an advantage is paid by a seller or purchaser to a third party or fiduciary for facilitating or brokering the sale of goods or services. They are accepted practice in several sectors, but an expected advantage can give rise to the real risk of improper performance of functions.

Commissions may be facilitation payments, where they are paid for the performance (or faster performance) of an existing duty (see Practice Note: Facilitation payments under the Bribery Act 2010).

If a commission is a facilitation payment, it will be unlawful. The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has said it will prosecute where the Code for Crown Prosecutors, Full Code Test is met; that is to say there is a realistic prospect of conviction on the evidence, and it is in the Public interest to do so. In cases where prosecution is not appropriate, the SFO may still use powers in