The protection of cultural assets

In Europe, the trade in works of art and antiques has become a major element of the economy. The demand for cultural assets is apparently so great that the illegal procurement of, and trade in, stolen works of art have also grown considerably.
National and international regulations such as import and export prohibitions have become necessary to curb these kinds of activities, and to offer effective protection against the loss and destruction of cultural objects.

By assisting the monitoring of these import and export prohibitions, the Customs Administration helps to ensure that the current German and Union-wide legislation for the protection of cultural property is observed when goods are being imported and/or exported.

Where goods are being transported within the European Union, the provisions of the Act to prevent the exodus of German cultural property (Kulturgutschutzgesetz, KGSG) must be observed and the relevant authorisations or supporting documents be carried.

The protection of cultural property of national significance

Works of art and other cultural assets, the removal of which from Germany would represent a substantial loss to the national heritage, are subject to specific safeguards.

The Act to prevent the exodus of German cultural property (Kulturgutschutzgesetz, KGSG) lays down that the export of cultural assets which are subject to Art. 6 (1) KGSG requires authorisation.
The cultural assets protected under Art. 6 (1) KGSG are listed in a register of cultural property of national significance, such as works of art, paintings, sculptures, library collections, manuscripts and archives, including photographic, cinematographic and sound archives. Registers of this kind have been compiled by each German regional agency (Länderbehörde) for the protection of cultural property, and published on the Internet at www.kulturgutschutz-deutschland.de as laid down in Art. 4 KGSG.

German regional (Länder) agencies for the protection of cultural property

In accordance with Art. 6 (1) (2-4) KGSG, even objects that are not listed in a register of cultural property of national significance are deemed protected national cultural assets if they are publicly owned and held by a heritage institution under public law, or if they are owned and held by a heritage institution which is predominantly funded by government grants, or if they are part of a federal or state-level art collection.

Both the temporary and permanent export of nationally significant cultural assets that are subject to Art. 6 KGSG require authorisation (Articles 22, 23 KGSG). Licences for the temporary export of cultural assets within the meaning of Art. 6 KGSG are issued by the cultural property protection agency of the German state in whose register of cultural property of national significance the items in question are listed pursuant Art. 6 (1) KGSG, or in whose territory the items are being held pursuant to Art. 6 (1) (2 and 3) KGSG at the time of lodging the licence application. Licences for the permanent export of cultural assets of national significance can only be issued by the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media.

If cultural objects subject to Art. 24 (1) (2) KGSG are to be exported to another Member State, an export licence will be required where such objects comply with the relevant thresholds of age and value. An overview of the age and value thresholds applicable to the various categories of cultural property in accordance with Art. 24 KGSG has been published on the joint website of the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media and the regional agencies for the protection of cultural property (Kulturgutschutzbehörden der Länder). For more information and applications for licences please contact your regional agency for the protection of cultural property.

Where cultural objects are being transported within the European Union, compliance with the provisions of the legislation on cultural assets is monitored by custom’s transport route inspection units. There is no provision for customs clearance.

Further provisions governing the protection of cultural objects

Further to the Act to prevent the exodus of German cultural property (Kulturgutschutzgesetz), a number of other legal provisions governing the protection of cultural objects exist, such as:

• Regulation (EC) No 116/2009 of 18 December 2008 on the export of cultural goods
• Regulation (EC) No 1210/2003 of 7 July 2003 concerning certain specific restrictions on economic and financial relations with Iraq
• Regulation (EU) No 36/2012 of 18 January 2012 concerning restrictive measures in view of the situation in Syria
• Regulation (EU) 2019/880 of 17 April 2019 on the introduction and the import of cultural goods
• UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property of 14 November 1970

More detailed information about this topic can be found on the joint website of the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media and the regional agencies (Länderbehörden) for the protection of cultural property.