Grease Payment Meaning

(chiefly US, idiomatic, business, law, ethics) A bribe or extorted money, usually relatively small in amount, provided to a low-level government official or business person, in order to expedite a business decision, shipment, or other transaction, especially in a country where such payments are not unusual.

Example: 1981, Peter Grier, "US curb on overseas bribes: too prim, or simply proper?," Christian Science Monitor, 28 Jul. (retrieved 9 Apr. 2009):
  Critics say there is no distinction between extortion and bribery, and that the distinction between a payoff (illegal) and a "grease" payment made to speed along normal duties (legal under the act) is unclear.
2007, Mike Rast, "Webinar Prepares Local Companies for Cultural Gaps with India, China," globalatlanta.com, 30 Oct. (retrieved 9 Apr. 2009):
  An important legal distinction is the difference between bribery and “grease payments,” which are paid in these countries not to affect someone’s decision-making but to speed the process of dealing with government.