Source: BUS Sachsen-Anhalt (Linie6PLus)

Applying for an Export Permit for Cultural Property

Description

For the export of cultural property from Germany, you need a permit if the cultural property exceeds certain age or value limits. Cultural assets are, for example, works of art, archaeological objects, archival material, manuscripts or antiques such as furniture, musical instruments or jewellery. You can find out about the age and value limits, for example, on the Internet portal of the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media for the Protection of Cultural Property.

If the authorisation requirement depends on a financial value of the cultural asset, this value shall be:

the price paid within the last 3 years in the event of a purchase or sale, or
in other cases, a reasoned domestic estimate at the time of application.

You can apply for authorisation from the competent authority. A distinction is made between permanent and temporary exports. Export is temporary if it is carried out for a period limited from the outset not exceeding 5 years.

You must apply in writing for authorisation to export cultural goods to the competent authority of the federal state in which the cultural property is located at the time of application. If you are a legal entity, your head office in Germany is decisive for local jurisdiction.

Note: You can also use a new online pilot procedure to apply for export permits for cultural goods. The online procedure includes an optional preliminary check in order to be able to determine on the basis of a few questions whether an export license is required in a specific case. In general, you no longer have to select the right application yourself, it is automatically determined on the basis of the information. The pilot operation serves to further test and optimize the process. At the same time, the procedure is to be expanded by the end of 2022 so that the digital granting of approval is also possible.

Requirements

A permit pursuant to Regulation (EC) No. 116/2009 or Section 24 (1) No. 2 of the Cultural Property Protection Act will be granted to you if:

You are entitled to apply,
- as owner or as authorised third party
you have submitted the required documents and
at the time of the decision, there is no export ban pursuant to § 21 numbers 1, 2, 4 and 5 of the Cultural Property Protection Act.

A permit pursuant to § 26 of the Cultural Property Protection Act can be granted to you if

You are entitled to apply,
- as the owner or as the lawful direct holder of the cultural asset
you have submitted the required documents,
at the time of the decision, there is no export ban pursuant to § 21 numbers 1, 2, 4 and 5 of the Cultural Property Protection Act and
As the applicant person, you guarantee that the cultural property intended for export will be reimported into the Federal territory in an undamaged condition and in due time.

A permit pursuant to § 25 of the Cultural Property Protection Act can be granted to you if

You are entitled to apply,
- Institutions that preserve cultural property are eligible to apply if they regularly temporarily export parts of their holdings for public exhibitions, restorations or research purposes.
you have submitted the required documents,
at the time of the decision, there is no export ban pursuant to § 21 numbers 1, 2, 4 and 5 of the Cultural Property Protection Act and
As the applicant person, you offer the guarantee that the cultural property intended for export will be reimported into the Federal territory in an undamaged condition and in due time.

Which documents are required?

What deadlines do I have to pay attention to?

For permits pursuant to Regulation (EC) No. 116/2009 and Section 24 (1) No. 1 of the Cultural Property Protection Act and Section 24 (1) No. 2 of the Cultural Property Protection Act, the period of validity is 12 months. Export (temporary or permanent) is possible until the last day of validity. The re-importation period (up to 5 years) for the one-time temporary export of cultural property (Regulation (EC) No. 116/2009 and Section 24 (1) No. 1 of the Cultural Property Protection Act) is determined by the authority according to the purpose of the export.

For permits pursuant to § 25 and § 26 of the Cultural Property Protection Act, the period of validity is up to 5 years. The (temporary) export is possible until the last day of the period of validity, the re-importation must take place within 5 years.

Processing duration

For an application under Regulation (EC) No. 116/2009 or Section 24 (1) No. 2 of the Cultural Property Protection Act, the processing time is up to 10 working days after submission of the complete application documents. Apart from the above-mentioned decision deadline for certain permits, the processing time depends on the completeness of the application documents submitted and the complexity of the application. The permit must be applied for in good time before the planned export of the cultural property.

Appeal

Forms available: Yes
Written form required: Yes
Informal application possible: No
Personal appearance required: No

The application forms are available via the authority finder on the Internet portal of the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media for the Protection of Cultural Property

Process flow

To apply for a permit for the export of registered cultural property online, you can use an online procedure that is currently in pilot operation. The online procedure includes an optional pre-check to determine whether an export license is required based on a few questions. In general, you no longer have to select the right application – it is automatically determined based on your information. The pilot operation serves to further test and optimize the process. At the same time, the procedure is to be expanded by the end of 2022 so that the digital granting of approval is also possible.

In order to apply in writing for a permit for the export of registered cultural property, the following steps are necessary:

Use the authority finder to find the competent authority and the PDF form for your federal state: https://www.kulturgutschutz-deutschland.de/DE/Service/Formulare/Behoerdenfinder/behoerdenfinder_node.html
Download the correct PDF form.
- Export permit according to Regulation (EC) No. 116/2009, § 25 or § 26 Cultural Property Protection Act for export to third countries and
- according to § 24 paragraph 1 number 2, § 25 or § 26 Cultural Property Protection Act for export to member states of the European Union
Fill out the PDF form on your PC.
Print the documents.
- 3 copies of the export licence in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 116/2009 for export to third countries (the form already contains all copies),
- Export licence according to § 24 paragraph 1 number 2 of the Cultural Property Protection Act for export to member states of the European Union in 2 copies,
- Export licenses according to § 25 and § 26 Cultural Property Protection Act in 2 copies each (Attention: the forms for export to third countries already contain all copies)
Sign in the boxes provided, stamp the documents if necessary and attach the necessary supporting documents to each copy.
Send the documents to the competent authority.
The authority will examine your application and send you
- 2 copies (export to a third country in accordance with Regulation No 116/2009) or
- one copy (export pursuant to § 24 paragraph 1 number 2, § 25 or § 26 Cultural Property Protection Act to a third country or export to member states of the European Union),
- return the completed, signed and sealed documents, accompanied, where appropriate, by a fee notice.
- Copy 1 is the application and remains with the authority. All other copies will be returned to you. When exporting to a third country in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 116/2009, you must present copies 2 and 3 to the competent German customs office of export with the export declaration. The customs office of export shall complete box 26 and give you copy 2. After the actual outcome, the German customs office of export shall confirm it in box 27 and return copy 3 to the authority which issued the licence.

If your application for an export licence is rejected, you will receive a written notification stating the reasons and instructions on how to appeal.

What else should I know?

A licence obtained by threat, bribery or collusion or obtained by providing incorrect or incomplete information pursuant to Section 22 (1) of the Cultural Property Protection Act is void pursuant to Section 22 (5) of the Cultural Property Protection Act. This applies mutatis mutandis to permits (§ 24 (1) numbers 1 and 2 of the Cultural Property Protection Act pursuant to § 24 (9) of the Cultural Property Protection Act).