The OFR updates the material in the eCFR on a daily basis. While we do not make updates in real-time, generally the eCFR is current within two business days. You can find how current the material is at the top of all eCFR content pages.
We capture the amendments posted each day so that you can look at what was posted on an earlier day. The previous eCFR material is identified at the top of the page with a banner noting the date it appeared on as well as a link to the current version.
If you are searching for an incorporated amendment based on a recent effective date, remember that we do not integrate amendments on their effective date in real-time. Amendments are typically available about 2 business days after their effective date.
When a document that will amend the CFR is published in the Federal Register it will contain a date on which that change becomes effective (known as the effective date). Shortly after the effective date of an amendment the OFR integrates the changes into the eCFR.
While some amendments have immediate effective dates, most have dates that are effective in the future. When the effective date is in the future the OFR inserts links into the affected eCFR content so that users can review these upcoming amendments – these are displayed as ‘Cross References’ in the content.
When the effective date arrives, the links are removed and the OFR integrates the changes into the eCFR. If the effective date of a regulation falls on a weekend or Federal holiday, the amendments are integrated into the current Code within two Federal business days.
Due to the complex nature of the regulatory process and publication requirements, the Office of the Federal Register must make allowances for various effective date scenarios during the editing and codification process. The Office has applied a standard policy to the display of amendment dates and future amendment cross references in the eCFR and they are outlined below. When conducting research using the eCFR, users should always use the source citations provided in the eCFR to verify the effective date of the CFR content by reviewing the Federal Register document.
Publication of amendments and editorial information. The links in the cross references provide a preview of the document that introduced amendment. The information provided includes the effective date, the Federal Register publication date and page citation, and a link to the Federal Register document on FederalRegister.gov and in the original PDF format on govinfo.gov
Researching amendment files. Even when we add cross references to amendments effective in the future, that does not guarantee that they become effective as originally stated in the Federal Register document. Agencies may correct, delay, or withdraw amendments before the effective date(s). We advise users to check the eCFR the day after a regulation is scheduled to go into effect to be certain that the agency did not publish a correction, delay, or withdrawal document in the daily Federal Register.
Effective on public inspection. Agencies may determine at their discretion that it is necessary to make a regulation effective on public inspection. The public inspection process occurs prior to publication, so the OFR must wait until the rule is published in the Federal Register and can legally be enforced before it can be codified in the eCFR. Therefore, the effective date displayed for these regulations in the eCFR reflects the publication date of the Federal Register issue in which they appeared. When conducting research using the eCFR, users should always use the source citations provided in the eCFR to verify the effective date of the CFR content by reviewing the Federal Register document. In certain situations, the OFR may provide editorial notes to alert users that the content they are viewing was effective prior to publication.
Retroactive effective dates. Cases brought before Federal court may result in certain provisions of published rules being vacated or effectuated. Agencies may republish or revise these provisions in order to implement the court order/judgement and these changes would have the same amendment date as the originally-published rule. In certain situations, the OFR may provide a notification on eCFR to alert users that the content they are viewing may have changed retroactively due to a Federal court decision.
Adjacent effective dates. The editorial codification process of the OFR is organized around the individual volumes of the CFR. Weekend and holiday days (non-business days or “adjacent” days) are bundled together with the updates for the eCFR issue for the next business day. If a single volume has amendments that are effective on adjacent days during that period, all amendments during that period will be codified with the effective date of the last amendment to the volume during that period. When conducting research using the eCFR, users should always use the source citations provided in the eCFR to verify the effective date of the CFR content by reviewing the Federal Register document.
Temporary rules and other un-codified rulemaking actions. The eCFR (like the annual editions of the CFR) does not include, or link to “temporary rules” or other regulations that will be in effect for less than one year. The eCFR also does not link to Federal Register documents that do not change the text or effective date of regulations. These include waivers, most interpretive rules, policy statements, and clarifications, as well as documents that affect compliance dates and applicability dates. However, these types of documents are available in the daily Federal Register and are referenced in the LSA (List of CFR Sections Affected).
Amendments affected by the Paperwork Reduction Act. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act, certain material related to information collections is not effective until approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). For the convenience of users, an amendment published in the daily Federal Register with OMB approval pending is provisionally incorporated into the text of the current Code, along with an effective date note carried at the end of the section.
Partially-effective CFR amendments. A new regulation may contain units of text with different effective dates. If a unit of text has a later effective date than the text in surrounding parallel units, the eCFR includes the later-effective text in the current Code for the convenience of users. An effective date note carried at the end of the section alerts readers to the later effective date.
Changes to authority citations. If an authority citation is revised after publication of an amendment with a future effective date, the eCFR amendment file links to the changed authority citation until the amendment is incorporated into the current Code.
Inconsistent or erroneous amendments. An amendment that was incorrectly drafted or that is clearly inconsistent with the codification structure or effectiveness of the current Code or pending amendments is cited in an editorial note, either within the text of the section where the amendment would appear, or at the end of the section.