Mandatory Professional Registration Law

Mandatory Professional Registration is established for the exercise of professions.

Only persons who hold valid degrees may engage in professional activities.

To establish a Professional Association, the following are required:

• a)

  A number of not fewer than thirty persons from the same professional field residing in the Republic;

• b)

  Obtain approval from the National Congress of its Organic Law; and c) Have its domicile in the capital of the Republic.

Professional Associations shall have the following purposes:

• a)

  Regulate, in accordance with their Organic Law, the exercise of the respective profession;

• b)

  Protect the freedom of professional exercise of the Association's members;

• c)

  Oversee and sanction the professional conduct of registered professionals, in accordance with what is provided by their respective Organic Law;

• d)

  Promote and encourage the cultural advancement of registered professionals for the purpose of enhancing the professions and ensuring they fulfill the social function that corresponds to them;

• e)

  Cooperate with the National Autonomous University of Honduras in administrative and technical-cultural aspects;

• f)

  Collaborate with the State in the fulfillment of its public functions;

• g)

  Participate in the study and resolution of national problems;

• h)

  Regulate the exercise of technical activities and the crafts and arts auxiliary to the professions;

• i)

  Promote solidarity and mutual aid among the Associations;

• j)

  Apply ethical norms for the exercise of their respective profession;

• k)

  Promote the rapprochement of Central American professionals; and,

• l)

  Any other lawful activity for the benefit of the profession and the community.

The Organic Law must contain:

• a)

  Obligations and rights of registered professionals;

• b)

  Time and procedure for calling General Assemblies, ordinary or extraordinary, and requirements that each convocation must meet;

• c)

  Time and procedure for constituting the Board of Directors or Court of Honor;

• d)

  Professional ethical norms, sanctions derived from their non-compliance, and the procedure for imposing them;

• e)

  Amount of dues, form of payment, sanctions for non-compliance in the payment of ordinary dues, and rules governing expenses;

• f)

  Date and form of rendering of accounts; and g) Other provisions deemed appropriate for the organization, management, and administration of the Association.

Professional Associations shall have the following bodies:

• a)

  The General Assembly;

• b)

  The Board of Directors; and c) The Court of Honor. However, each Association is authorized to create the specialized bodies it deems appropriate for the better fulfillment of its functions.

The General Assembly is the supreme body of an Association. It shall meet at least once per year. For this purpose, the attendance of more than half of the registered professionals is required, but if a session cannot be held due to lack of quorum, the Board of Directors shall convene for the same purpose and the Assembly shall be held legally with the number in attendance. Attendance may be in person or by representatives, who must be members of the Association. No one may hold more than two proxies.

The powers of the Assembly are:

• a)

  Draft and propose preliminary bills of the Organic Law and of reforms or modifications deemed appropriate;

• b)

  Elect the members of the Board of Directors and the Court of Honor;

• c)

  Adopt the Regulations necessary for the Association to fulfill its functions;

• d)

  Fix annually the Budget of Expenses, based on the draft submitted by the Board of Directors;

• e)

  Examine the reports and acts of the Board of Directors and consider complaints and appeals of its resolutions for violation of its Organic Law or Regulations;

• f)

  Agree upon temporary suspensions in the exercise of the profession, except as provided by the Constitution of the Republic and the laws; and,

• g)

  All functions that by its Organic Law are not attributed to any other body.

The Board of Directors is the executive body, responsible for the management and governance of the Association and shall have its legal representation.

The Board of Directors shall be composed of nine members whose organization and powers shall be determined by the respective Organic Law.

The powers of the Board of Directors are:

• a)

  Comply with and ensure compliance with legal provisions and resolutions of the General Assemblies;

• b)

  Propose the respective Regulations, in accordance with the Organic Law, and issue the appropriate resolutions for their faithful compliance;

• c)

  Present annually to the General Assembly the Budget of Expenses, a detailed report of its work, and a detailed account of the administration of funds; and,

• d)

  Ensure that registered professionals comply with the Organic Law and other obligations incumbent upon them, and observe the norms of professional ethics.

The Court of Honor is constituted to conduct investigations and issue opinions, proposing to the Board of Directors the corresponding sanctions when it is proven that a member of the Association has violated professional ethics.

The Court of Honor shall be composed of seven members elected annually by the General Assembly.

Associations shall be considered constituted and with legal personality when their Organic Law takes effect and it is accredited, by the usual means of proof, what is provided in sections a and c of Article 3 of this Law.

Each Association shall be required to maintain a registry of registered professionals.

The sanctions that the authorities of Professional Associations may impose are the following: fine, private admonition, public admonition, suspension from six months to three years in the exercise of the profession, which shall be applied in accordance with the gravity of the infraction, except as provided by the Constitution of the Republic and the Laws.

With the exception referred to in the preceding article, final judgments that declare suspension must be communicated by the Board of Directors to the corresponding authorities, which shall be obligated to comply with them and impose the respective sanctions.

From the establishment of a Professional Association, persons who hold valid credentials to exercise the corresponding professional activities are considered registered in its registry. In the event that multiple associations of the same professional branch are established, no professional may exercise their respective profession unless their registration in the Association of their choice is documented.

Professional Associations shall have their own patrimony, which shall be constituted by all assets and rights acquired for any reason.

Professional Associations shall have free administration of their assets, but they may not dispose of their patrimony except for the realization of those purposes that are inherent to them.

University graduates who do not meet the number required by subsection a) of article 3 of this Law must affiliate with the Association that has the greatest affinities with their profession.

For the better performance of their functions, Professional Associations may federate and affiliate with international organizations.

It is prohibited for Professional Associations to participate in sectarian activities of a political or religious nature.

The entities referred to in this Law shall be exempt from the payment of all classes of taxes, and shall enjoy postal and telegraph franchise for the performance of their functions.

This Law shall enter into force from the day of its publication in the official journal "La Gaceta."