Arbiter Guide

How to use this guide

This guide is not a substitute for official FIDE documents. It is a practical overview of the rules, procedures and situations an arbiter encounters in tournament practice. A useful study order is: first the Laws of Chess, then rapid and blitz, followed by ratings and titles, and finally Swiss pairings, tie-breaks and practical arbiter cases.

2. Arbiter titles and professional development

Arbiter development combines knowledge of the rules, practical application, tournament experience and continuous study of current regulations.

Core elements

• Participation in recognized arbiter seminars and practical training.
• Knowledge examinations where required by the regulations.
• Practical norms from tournaments under the current FIDE regulations.
• Applications through the national federation and the relevant FIDE procedure.

3. Role of the arbiter

An arbiter is not simply a person who gives penalties. The arbiter ensures proper playing conditions, application of the rules, Fair Play and equal treatment of all players.

The arbiter should

• ensure that the Laws of Chess are observed,
• prevent players from being disturbed,
• monitor the event, clocks, scoresheets and results,
• make calm and impartial decisions,
• avoid unnecessary arguments with players,
• apply the tournament regulations consistently,
• record important incidents in the arbiter report.

4. Laws of Chess – essentials for arbiter practice

4.1 Board, pieces and initial position

• The board has 64 squares, arranged 8×8.
• Each player must have a light square in the right-hand corner.
• The queen starts on a square of her own colour.
• White makes the first move.

4.2 Legal move

A move is legal only when it follows the movement rules of the piece and does not leave or place the player's own king in check.

4.3 Castling

Castling is a move of the king and a rook of the same colour on the same rank. It is not permitted if the king has moved, the relevant rook has moved, the king is in check, the king crosses an attacked square or the king finishes on an attacked square. The squares between king and rook must be vacant.

4.4 En passant

A pawn that advances two squares from its starting square and lands beside an opposing pawn may be captured en passant as though it had moved only one square. This right exists only on the immediately following move.

4.5 Promotion

When a pawn reaches the last rank it must be replaced by a queen, rook, bishop or knight of the same colour. The choice does not depend on pieces previously captured.

4.6 Touch-move

• If the player to move deliberately touches one of their own pieces, that piece must be moved if a legal move exists.
• If the player deliberately touches an opponent's piece, it must be captured if a legal capture exists.
• If the player intends only to adjust a piece, this must be announced beforehand, for example by saying “j'adoube”.
• If none of the touched pieces can legally be moved or captured, the player may make any legal move.

5. End of the game

Dead position

Typical examples include K versus K, K+B versus K and K+N versus K, as well as blocked positions in which neither side can ever give checkmate by any legal sequence.

6. Draws – rules often tested

6.1 Threefold repetition

Positions are considered the same only when the same player has the move, pieces of the same kind and colour occupy the same squares, and all possible moves are the same. Castling and en-passant rights therefore matter.

A player may claim a draw if the intended move will produce the third occurrence, or if the same position has already appeared for the third time.

6.2 Fivefold repetition

Five occurrences of the same position result in an automatic draw; the arbiter should intervene.

6.3 50-move rule

A player may claim a draw after 50 moves by each player without a pawn move and without a capture.

6.4 75-move rule

After 75 moves by each player without a pawn move or capture, the game is automatically drawn unless the last move resulted in checkmate.

6.5 Draw offer

The correct sequence is: make a move, offer the draw, then press the clock. A draw offer remains valid until the opponent accepts it, rejects it verbally, rejects it by making a move, or otherwise clearly rejects it.

6.6 Claim procedure

• Only the player having the move may claim a draw by threefold repetition or the 50-move rule.
• If the position is to arise after an intended move, the player writes the move down without playing it, stops the clock and summons the arbiter.
• If the claim is correct, the game ends immediately as a draw.
• If the claim is incorrect, the arbiter applies the time adjustment required by the Laws for the relevant time control and the game continues.

7. Irregularities

7.1 Illegal move

An illegal move is one that does not comply with the Laws: leaving the king in check, moving a piece incorrectly, illegal castling, improper promotion, an invalid en-passant capture, and similar cases.

7.2 Completed illegal move

• First completed illegal move in a standard game: add two minutes to the opponent.
• Under the applicable rapid/blitz rules, the first completed illegal move normally gives the opponent one minute.
• A second completed illegal move by the same player in the same game loses the game, unless the opponent cannot possibly checkmate by any series of legal moves.

7.3 Incorrect initial position, board or clock

The remedy depends on when the error is discovered and on the relevant Laws and competition rules. A wrongly oriented board is corrected by transferring the position to a correctly oriented board. A wrongly set clock should be adjusted using the best available information.

7.4 Illegal position

If an illegal position is found, reconstruct the last known legal position when possible. Use scoresheets, the current board and reliable evidence.

8. Chess clocks

8.1 Basic use

The player must press the clock with the same hand used to make the move. A player must not keep a finger on the clock button or hover over it.

Open Benko Chess digital clock

8.2 Time controls

8.3 Flag fall

A legally delivered checkmate ends the game immediately. If a player's flag has fallen, that player loses only if the opponent can checkmate by some possible series of legal moves; otherwise the result is a draw.

9. Rapid and blitz

9.1 Definitions

• Rapid: more than 10 minutes but less than 60 minutes per player, including the increment calculated as specified by the Laws.
• Blitz: 10 minutes or less per player under the FIDE calculation.
• Standard: 60 minutes or more per player under the FIDE calculation.

9.2 Arbiter intervention

Rapid and blitz require special attention to when an arbiter may intervene independently and when a timely claim by a player is required. Always identify the sequence of events: move, clock press, claim, opponent's next move, mate and flag fall.

10. Scoresheets

In standard chess, players normally record their moves clearly and move by move. Scoresheets are tournament documents and can be essential when verifying repetitions, move counts, illegal moves and other claims.

Time trouble

Under the Laws, a player may be excused from recording when the remaining time and increment meet the specified conditions. With an increment of at least 30 seconds per move, the obligation generally continues.

Reconstruction

After time trouble, the record may need to be completed before play continues, depending on the applicable rule.

11. Player conduct

• Players must not distract or annoy the opponent.
• Analysis on another board during the game is not permitted.
• Notes, information sources and outside advice are prohibited.
• Electronic devices are governed by the Laws and competition regulations.
• Players must respect arbiter decisions, while retaining any right of appeal provided by the regulations.

Mobile phones

Before the round, the arbiter should clearly explain the event's rules on mobile phones and other electronic devices, including storage, exceptions and penalties.

12. Fair Play and anti-cheating

Fair Play is one of the most important modern areas of arbiter work. Protect the integrity of the event without making casual or public accusations.

The arbiter should

• observe suspicious behaviour objectively,
• control access to the playing venue as required by the regulations,
• prevent unauthorized electronic-device use,
• record facts rather than impressions,
• follow the prescribed Fair Play procedure.

The arbiter should not

• publicly accuse a player without evidence,
• discuss suspicions casually with other players,
• treat an engine score as the sole proof of cheating,
• compromise a player's dignity or privacy unnecessarily.

13. FIDE rating regulations

13.1 What the arbiter checks

• The event was registered correctly and on time.
• The time control is eligible for the intended rating category.
• Players have the correct FIDE IDs and federations.
• Results and dates are entered correctly.
• Games reported as played were actually played.
• Forfeits and byes are marked correctly.

13.2 K-factor

The arbiter should understand the purpose of the K-factor and know that its exact application depends on the current FIDE Rating Regulations. Always verify the current thresholds rather than relying on memory.

14. FIDE titles and norms

Norm events

Important factors include the number of games, titled opponents, federations represented, opponents' average rating, performance and all other conditions in the current Title Regulations.

The arbiter must verify the data carefully and should never certify a norm that does not satisfy the regulations.

15. Swiss pairing systems

Key terms

• Score group: players with the same score.
• Floater: a player transferred to another score group.
• Downfloater: a player transferred to a lower score group.
• Upfloater: a player transferred to a higher score group.
• Colour preference: preference or requirement for White or Black based on previous colours.

Core principles

• Two players should not meet more than once.
• Players with the same or similar score should be paired as far as the system requires.
• Colour allocation and colour history must be respected as far as possible.
• The arbiter must understand why the pairing program produced a pairing and be able to identify an invalid pairing.

16. Tie-break systems

The competition regulations should state the tie-break order in advance.

Forfeits and byes

Unplayed games, byes and withdrawn players require the special treatment prescribed by the current tie-break regulations.

17. Team competitions

The arbiter should verify team compositions, board order, submission deadlines, player identity, captain communication rules, match points, game points and team tie-breaks.

18. Appeals and disciplinary decisions

A player may request an explanation and, when the regulations allow it, lodge an appeal. The arbiter should stay calm, explain the decision briefly and direct the player to the formal appeal procedure.

• The regulations should define the appeal deadline.
• An appeal fee or deposit may be required.
• An Appeals Committee may decide the appeal.
• The arbiter should provide a factual report.

19. Swiss-Manager, Vega and Chess-Results

An arbiter does not need to be a programmer, but must understand basic pairing-software operation and know how to prevent data and pairing errors.

Before the event

• Enter the correct event name, dates and time control.
• Verify every player's FIDE ID, federation, sex, year of birth and rating where relevant.
• Set the correct number of rounds, pairing system and tie-breaks.
• Create regular backups.

After each round

• Verify every result before pairing the next round.
• Check wins, draws, forfeits and byes carefully.
• Publish pairings only after verification.
• At the end, verify final standings, prizes and rating reports.

20. Practical arbiter cases

Case 1: A player touches the queen, then wants to move a knight

Apply the touch-move rule. If the queen has a legal move, it must be moved.

Case 2: A player says “checkmate”, but it is not mate

The verbal statement has no special force. Continue the game if the position is legal; deal with any disturbance separately if needed.

Case 3: A phone rings in a bag

Apply the Laws of Chess and the event's published electronic-device regulations.

Case 4: A player claims a draw under the 50-move rule with an incomplete scoresheet

Establish the facts using all reliable evidence. A claim must be verified, not assumed.

Case 5: A player delivers checkmate while a flag-fall issue is being raised

Determine the exact sequence of events. A legal checkmate ends the game immediately when it occurs.

Case 6: An incorrect result is entered in Chess-Results

Verify the actual result and correct the tournament record as soon as possible.

21. Knowledge check

After studying this guide, use the dedicated 150-question test page to practice the Laws of Chess, rapid/blitz, clocks, ratings, titles, Swiss systems, Fair Play and practical arbiter decisions.

Open 150 Arbiter Test Questions

22. Official sources

Use this guide together with the current official documents:

• FIDE Laws of Chess
• FIDE Arbiters' Manual 2025 (PDF)
• FIDE Regulations for the Titles of Arbiters
• FIDE Rating Regulations
• FIDE Handbook
• FIDE Arbiters' Commission