Penal Law § 175.45

Issuing a false financial statement · as in force on May 31, 2026

§ 175.45 Issuing a false financial statement.

A person is guilty of issuing a false financial statement when, with intent to defraud:

1. He knowingly makes or utters a written instrument which purports to describe the financial condition or ability to pay of some person and which is inaccurate in some material respect; or

2. He represents in writing that a written instrument purporting to describe a person's financial condition or ability to pay as of a prior date is accurate with respect to such person's current financial condition or ability to pay, whereas he knows it is materially inaccurate in that respect.

Issuing a false financial statement is a class A misdemeanor.

Official sourcehttps://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/PEN/175.45

In plain English

A person commits issuing a false financial statement, intending to defraud, by:

(1) knowingly making or issuing a materially inaccurate writing about someone’s financial condition or ability to pay; or
(2) representing in writing that an older financial writing remains currently accurate, knowing it is materially inaccurate now. ★

The offense is a class A misdemeanor.

Marked in the text: penalties, time limits, sums of money. Editorial emphasis added by this edition; it does not appear in the statute as enacted.

In print

This provision appears in Volume 4 — The Court Clerk: Penal Law; Volume 1 — The Court Officer in Plain English; Volume 3 — The Court Officer: Penal Law; Volume 3 — Your Career: Penal Law in Plain English.