IFPE, an international organization devoted to psychiatric epidemiology and related health services research, was set up at an international conference in Brussels in 1985, following on earlier French-speaking meetings held in Lyon (1981) and Geneva (1983). Its first president was Swiss and original statutes conformed to the Swiss civil code. From these beginnings, the Federation has grown into a truly global organization. Further successful congresses have been held in Madrid (1987), Montreal (1990), Lisbon (1993), Santiago de Compostela (1996), Taipei (1999), Edmonton (2002), Bristol (2004), Goteberg (2007) and an Asia Pacific Regional Conference was held in Shah Alam, Malaysia (2001). The current statutes were adopted in 1993 and revised in 1999 and 2004. The present president and vice-president were elected in Goteberg (2007).