The acting government of Venezuela formally deposited its decision to withdraw from the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, a move confirmed by the United Nations on 6 August 2026. The formal notification, executed on 24 July 2026, initiates a one-year countdown for the withdrawal to take legal effect on 24 July 2027.
Ana Piquer, Amnesty International’s Americas Director, stated that the withdrawal represents “the last step in a long string of efforts to avoid scrutiny and accountability for some of the most serious crimes under international law.” The decision follows an announcement initially made by the Venezuelan government in 2025 and reiterated in July 2026 before its official registration in the UN web repository.
Legal Impact on the ICC Investigation
According to international legal frameworks governing the ICC, withdrawing from the Rome Statute has no effect on the ongoing criminal investigation by the Office of the Prosecutor into crimes against humanity committed prior to the decision, nor does it affect investigations into events occurring before 24 July 2027.
The ICC Office of the Prosecutor opened a preliminary examination into the situation in Venezuela in 2018. On 3 November 2021, the court advanced the matter by opening a full investigation into potential crimes against humanity. That mandate specifically targets crimes including the deprivation of liberty, torture, sexual violence, and politically motivated persecution against detainees. The prosecutor’s office has established that these abuses have been committed since at least April 2017 by state security forces, civil authorities, and pro-government armed groups known as “collectives.”
Documentation of Systemic Repression
Independent human research organizations and international bodies have documented widespread abuses under the administration of Nicolás Maduro. In 2019, Amnesty International concluded that systematic attacks against the civilian population—including extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances, arbitrary detentions, and political persecution—amounted to crimes against humanity. Similar conclusions have been reached by the ICC Office of the Prosecutor and the United Nations international independent Fact-Finding Mission.
Amnesty International highlighted that the upcoming renewal of the Fact-Finding Mission’s mandate during the United Nations Human Rights Council session in September and October is more crucial than ever to maintain international documentation of ongoing violations.
“There are thousands of victims of the Venezuelan government’s policy of repression. They have not, and will not, give up on their rights,” Piquer said. “The avenues for truth and justice they have so courageously sought and opened outside of Venezuela remain active.”
Despite the acting government’s decision to sever ties with the ICC treaty framework, parallel accountability mechanisms—including the active ICC Office of the Prosecutor investigation, the UN Fact-Finding Mission, and proceedings initiated under the principle of universal jurisdiction in foreign courts—continue to function as victims pursue redress outside domestic jurisdictions.
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