| title | Statutes of the International Federation of Liberal Youth |
|---|---|
| date | As adopted by the 58th General Assembly held in Taipei, Taiwan, 11th-14th June 2026. |
The association is established under Belgian law with the name "International Federation of Liberal Youth, Association Internationale Sans But Lucratif (AISBL)". This is abbreviated as IFLRY.
The registered office of the association is located in the Brussels-Capital Region of Belgium.
The purpose of IFLRY, in Belgium and abroad, will be to promote liberal ideas and to contribute to development and the promotion of human rights, democracy, free trade, and cooperation at the global level, through political education and connecting young people. To achieve these aims, IFLRY organises publications, seminars, group trips, colloquia, courses, and meetings with other organisations during which the aforementioned topics are discussed and during which an exchange of information takes place.
The official languages of the organisation are French, Spanish and English. The working language of the association is English and is used for all official documents apart from the Statutes, for which the French version is binding as required by Belgian law.
The statutory governing documents of the association are, in order of precedence:
- Statutes,
- Rules of Procedure,
- Internal Regulations.
The Statutes provide a broad overview of the structure and purpose of the association. The Rules of Procedure set out the organisational procedures including meetings, voting and decision making processes of the association. The Internal Regulations govern the behaviours, rights and responsibilities of members. Where the statutory documents cannot be applied, the General Assembly decides.
IFLRY is a full member of the Liberal International and holds a special status as its officially recognised international liberal youth organisation. In this capacity, IFLRY collaborates closely with Liberal International to promote shared values, while retaining complete autonomy and independence in its decision-making, governance, and activities.
IFLRY operates on a federal structure and is primarily composed of member organisations. The highest decision-making body of the association is the General Assembly (see article), comprising representatives from its members. The General Assembly is responsible for setting the overall direction of the association and adopting key decisions.
The overall direction and external representation of the association are the responsibility of the elected executive Bureau (see article), which operates in accordance with the Statutes and decisions of the General Assembly.
The General Assembly and the Bureau are the statutory bodies that together govern the association in compliance with Belgian law. The association may employ staff, known as the Office, to handle administrative and operational tasks. The Office is headed by the Executive Director, who is appointed and dismissed by the Bureau. The Bureau may entrust daily management of the association to the members of the Managing Bureau and the Executive Director, each exercising daily management powers individually. The Bureau may also grant the Executive Director specific authority for recurring acts, including the signing of employment contracts and agreements with grant authorities. The Office operates under the direction of the Bureau.
IFLRY has the following voting methods:
- simple majority: requires a greater number of votes in favour than against;
- absolute majority: requires a greater number of votes in favour than the combined number of votes abstaining and against;
- simple two-thirds majority: requires a greater number of votes in favour than twice the number against;
- absolute two-thirds majority: requires a greater number of votes in favour than twice the combined number of votes abstaining and against.
Unless specified otherwise, all decisions made by the bodies defined in these Statutes shall be made by simple majority.
Abstaining from voting is always allowed. Both actively abstaining, where the abstention is specifically communicated, as well as passive abstentions, where a voting member of a body is counted as present but refrains from voting, are treated identically.
IFLRY is composed of five types of member organisations:
- Full Members
- Associate Members
- Observer Members
- The Individual Members Group
- Regional Members
All national youth or national student organisations in agreement with the aims of IFLRY (as described in article) and the Manifesto are welcome to apply for full or associate membership status. Similarly, international youth organisations representing a coherent region of the world and satisfying the same requirements are welcome to apply for regional membership status. Organisations that do not fit these criteria may instead apply for observer membership.
The Individual Members Group (IMG) is a distinct entity which collectively holds membership in its own right. Admission to the IMG is granted by an Individual Members Vetting Committee (IMVC) appointed by the Bureau.
Full membership can be granted by an absolute two-thirds majority of Full Members present at the General Assembly. Regional membership can be granted by an absolute two-thirds majority vote of the General Assembly. Associate membership can be granted by an absolute majority vote of the General Assembly. Observer membership can be granted by a simple majority vote of the General Assembly.
All members commit themselves to fulfilling both of the following membership obligations:
(a) to adhere to the financial obligations as stated in the Membership Fee Statute. Organisations and individual members which have fulfilled these obligations are considered in good financial standing; (b) to uphold the values as stated in the Manifesto.
All members have the right to attend the General Assembly and to access the minutes and annual accounts of the association.
Full Members have the right to vote at the General Assembly, to nominate candidates, and to put forward and amend proposals. Associate Members and the Individual Members Group have the right to vote and to put forward and amend proposals, subject to the limitations set out in the Rules of Procedure. Regional Members have the right to put forward resolutions and amendments. Observer Members have the right to observe proceedings but do not have voting rights.
Any Full, Associate, Observer or Regional Member organisation may withdraw from the association at any time by written notice to the Bureau. Withdrawal takes effect upon receipt of that notice and does not release the member from obligations already due.
Member organisations and individual members can be temporarily suspended, or have their membership terminated, for breaches of membership obligations as described in article or other severe reasons. The voting procedure used for suspending or expelling an organisation is the same as would be used for admitting any other organisation of an equivalent membership type.
The General Assembly is the highest decision-making body of IFLRY and has full powers to accomplish the aims and objectives of the Federation. The General Assembly is made up of all members of the Federation.
The General Assembly shall meet at least once a year, at a date and place determined by the Bureau. An invitation to the General Assembly shall be sent to all members at least eight weeks before the meeting. The decisions of the General Assembly shall be communicated to the members no later than thirty days after adjournment, in accordance with the Rules of Procedure.
Only full and Associate Member organisations in good financial standing shall be accorded voting rights. Voting rights in the General Assembly are to be distributed according to the membership type and size of the member organisation.
The General Assembly holds all powers expressly granted to it by Belgian law, including but not limited to:
(a) Approval of the annual accounts and budget. (b) Election and dismissal of Bureau members. (c) Admission and exclusion of members. (d) Amendment of the Statutes. (e) Dissolution of the AISBL and allocation of its assets.
An Extraordinary General Assembly can be called by a simple majority by the Bureau, by (a group of) Full Member organisations representing at least one-fifth of the votes that would have been cast at the most recent General Assembly or one-fourth of the Full Member organisations or one-tenth of all organisations.
The IFLRY Bureau consists of at least three and no more than seven Bureau members elected by a General Assembly. The Managing Bureau consists of three Bureau members: President, Secretary General, and Treasurer who shall serve as the Board of Directors (Organe d’Administration) under Belgian Law. The Bureau consists of the Managing Bureau and up to four Vice Presidents. The Managing Bureau will be elected for a period of two years; the Vice Presidents will be elected for a period of one year. The election and responsibilities of the Bureau are described further in the Rules of Procedure.
The Bureau is responsible for the day-to-day management of the Federation and for the control of all its resources. The Bureau has to report to the General Assembly. Regional Member Organisations can appoint Regional Bureau Appointees. Regional Bureau Appointees do not have voting rights in the Bureau.
Individual Bureau Members can be suspended from their Bureau. A Bureau member may resign at any time by written notice to the Bureau. The General Assembly, whether ordinary or extraordinary, may dismiss a Bureau member by means of a motion of no-confidence. A motion of no-confidence requires a two-thirds majority to pass, unless it was submitted as an organisational proposal four weeks before the General Assembly, in which case a simple majority suffices.
The association shall be represented towards third parties and in legal matters by at least two members of the Managing Bureau acting jointly, unless otherwise specified by the Statutes or Belgian law.
The financial year of IFLRY is the calendar year.
Every proposal that aims to amend the documents listed in article can be passed by a two-thirds majority vote of the General Assembly. Proposals to change the Statutes must be made by the Bureau, or by a group of no less than two full member organisations. Amendments must be submitted in the language used for that document as described in article.
Every proposal that aims to dissolve the Federation must be put forward by the Bureau, a group of Full Member organisations representing at least one-fifth of the votes that could have been cast at the most recent General Assembly, or by a group of at least one-fourth of the Full Member organisations. Any proposal for dissolution of the Federation must be carried by two consecutive General Assemblies. At the first General Assembly, the proposal must be supported by at least a two-thirds majority. At the second General Assembly, the same proposal must have a simple majority in order to take effect.
The General Assembly will determine in which manner the Federation is dissolved and in which manner the dissolution is settled.
In case of dissolution, any remaining net assets of the AISBL shall be allocated to one or more non-profit legal entities pursuing a disinterested purpose similar to that of IFLRY, as designated by the General Assembly. Under no circumstances may the assets be returned to members or used for their benefit.