24 SEPTEMBER 2006. - Act enacting the Agreement between the Member States of the European Union concerning the status of military and civilian personnel seconded to the institutions of the European Union, the headquarters and the forces that can be made available to the European Union in the preparation and execution of the missions referred to in Article 17, paragraph 2, of the Treaty on the European Union, including during exercises, and the military and civil personnel of the Member States

ALBERT II, King of the Belgians,
To all, present and to come, Hi.
The Chambers adopted and We sanction the following:
Article 1^er. This Act regulates a matter referred to in Article 77 of the Constitution.
Art. 2. The Agreement between the Member States of the European Union concerning the status of military and civilian personnel seconded to the institutions of the European Union, the headquarters and the forces that can be made available to the European Union in the preparation and execution of the missions referred to in Article 17, paragraph 2, of the Treaty on the European Union, including during exercises, and military and civilian personnel of the Member States made available to the EU
Art. 3. Specific agreements or arrangements to be adopted on the basis of articles 11, 12, 13, paragraph 1^er and 19, paragraph 7 as well as the specific arrangements referred to in Article 19, paragraph 6 (b) of the Agreement between the Member States of the European Union relating to the status of military and civilian personnel detached from the institutions of the European Union, the headquarters and the forces that can be made available to the European Union within the framework of the preparation and execution of the missions referred to in Article 17, paragraph 2, of the Treaty on the European Union,
Art. 4. The troops of the States bound to Belgium by the Agreement between the Member States of the European Union relating to the status of the military and civil personnel detached from the institutions of the European Union, the headquarters and the forces that can be made available to the European Union within the framework of the preparation and execution of the missions referred to in Article 17, paragraph 2, of the Treaty on the European Union, including during exercises, and of the military and civil personnel
Promulgation of this law, let us order that it be clothed with the seal of the State and published by the Belgian Monitor.
Given in Brussels on 24 September 2006.
ALBERT
By the King:
Minister of Foreign Affairs,
K. DE GUCHT
The Minister of Justice,
Ms. L. ONKELINX
Minister of Finance,
D. REYNDERS
The Minister of the Interior,
P. DEWAEL
Minister of Defence,
A. FLAHAUT
The Secretary of State for European Affairs,
DONFUT
Seal of the state seal:
The Minister of Justice,
Ms. L. ONKELINX
____
Notes
(1) Session 2005-2006.
Senate:
Documents. - Bill tabled on 5 May 2006, No. 3-1693/1. - Report, number 3-1693/2.
Annales parliamentarians. - Discussion, meeting of 6 July 2006. - Vote, meeting of 6 July 2006.
House of Representatives:
Documents. - Project transmitted by the Senate, No. 51-2604/1. - Text adopted in plenary and subject to Royal Assent, No. 51-2604/2.
Annales parliamentarians. - Discussion, meeting of 13 July 2006. - Vote, meeting of 13 July 2006.
(2) Entry into international force.

Agreement between the Member States of the European Union concerning the status of military and civilian personnel seconded to the institutions of the European Union, the headquarters and the forces that can be made available to the European Union in the preparation and execution of the missions referred to in Article 17, paragraph 2, of the Treaty on the European Union, including during exercises, and the military and civil personnel of the Member States made available to act in the EU framework
Representatives of the governments of the Member States of the European Union, gathered in the Council,
Considering the Treaty on the European Union (TEU), including its title V,
Considering the following:
(1) The European Council has decided, as part of the pursuit of the objectives of common foreign policy and security, to equip the EU with the capacity to take and implement decisions on all conflict prevention and crisis management missions defined in the TEU.
(2) The decisions, taken at the national level, to send forces of member states of the European Union (hereinafter referred to as "member states") to the territory of other member states and to host these forces of member states in the context of the preparation and execution of the missions referred to in Article 17, paragraph 2, of the TEU, including in separate exercises, shall intervene in accordance with the provisions of title V of the TEU,
(3) Specific agreements must be concluded with the third countries concerned in the case of exercises or operations taking place outside the territory of the Member States.
(4) The provisions of this Agreement shall not affect the rights and obligations of the parties under international agreements and other international instruments establishing international tribunals, including the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court,
The following agreed:
PART I
COMMON PROVISIONS AGAINST MILITARY AND CIVIL PERSONNEL
ARTICLE 1^er
For the purposes of this Agreement:
1. "military personnel":
(a) military personnel detached by member states to the General Secretariat of the Council to establish the staff of the European Union (EMUE);
(b) military personnel other than those from EU institutions, to which the EU may appeal to Member States in order to provide a temporary reinforcement that would be requested by the European Union Military Committee (EUMC) for activities in the preparation and execution of the tasks referred to in Article 17, paragraph 2, of the EU, including during exercises;
(c) the military personnel of the Member States who are seconded to headquarters and the forces that may be made available to the EU, or the personnel of these forces and headquarters, in the preparation and execution of the missions referred to in Article 17, paragraph 2, of the EU, including during exercises;
2. "civil personnel": civilian personnel detached by the Member States to the EU institutions for activities in the preparation and execution of the tasks referred to in Article 17, paragraph 2, of the TEU, including during exercises, or civilian personnel, with the exception of locally recruited personnel, working for headquarters or forces or placed at any other level at the disposal of the EU by the Member States for
3. "dependant": any person defined or admitted as a member of the family or designated as a member of the household or member of the military or civilian personnel by the legislation of the State of origin. However, if this legislation considers only a person living under the same roof as the member of the military or civilian personnel to be a member of the family or household, that condition is deemed to be met when the person in question is primarily responsible for that member of the military or civilian personnel;
4. " force " means persons belonging to military and civilian personnel or entities made up of military and civilian personnel, within the meaning of paragraphs 1 and 2, provided that the member States concerned may agree that certain persons, units, formations or other entities should not be regarded as a force or being part of this agreement;
5. "the headquarters": a headquarters located in the territory of the Member States, established by one or more Member States or by an international organization and which may be made available to the EU in the preparation and execution of the tasks referred to in Article 17, paragraph 2, of the EU, including during exercises;
6. "State of origin": the Member State of which the member of the military or civilian personnel or the force belongs;
7. "State of residence": the Member State in whose territory is the member of the military or civilian personnel, the force or the headquarters, whether stationed, in deployment or in transit, within the framework of a collective or individual mission order or a decision to detach the EU institutions.
ARTICLE 2
1. Member States shall facilitate, as appropriate, the entry, stay and departure for official purposes of personnel referred to in Article 1^er and dependants. However, staff and dependants may be required to provide evidence that they fall within the categories described in section 1^er.
2. To this end, and without prejudice to the relevant rules applicable to the free movement of persons under community law, an individual or collective order of mission or a decision to detach the EU institutions suffice.
ARTICLE 3
Military and civilian personnel and their dependants are required to respect the laws of the State of residence and to refrain from any activity incompatible with the spirit of this agreement.
ARTICLE 4
For the purposes of this Agreement:
1. The driving permits issued by the military authorities of the State of origin are recognized in the territory of the State of residence for comparable military vehicles.
2. The authorized staff of any Member State may provide medical and dental care to the staff of the forces and headquarters of any other Member State.
ARTICLE 5
Military personnel and all the civil personnel concerned shall wear their uniform according to the regulations in force in the State of origin.
ARTICLE 6
Vehicles with a registration plate specific to the armed forces or the administration of the State of origin shall bear, in addition to their registration number, a mark distinct from their nationality.
PART II
PROVISIONS UNIQUEMENT TO THE MILITARY PERSONNEL OR CIVIL DETACHE WITHOUT EU INSTITUTIONS
ARTICLE 7
Military or civilian personnel detached from EU institutions may hold and carry weapons in accordance with Article 13, when working for headquarters or forces that may be made available to the EU in the preparation and execution of the tasks referred to in Article 17, paragraph 2, of the EU, including during exercises, or when participating in operations related to these missions.
ARTICLE 8
1. Military or civilian personnel detached from EU institutions shall enjoy the immunity of any jurisdiction for the words spoken or written and for the acts performed in the performance of their duties; he continues to enjoy this immunity even after the end of his detachment.
2. Immunity referred to in this Article shall be granted in the interest of the EU and not in the interest of the personnel concerned.
3. The competent authority of the State of origin and the institutions of the EU concerned raise the immunity of military or civilian personnel detached from the EU institutions in the event that this immunity would hinder the action of justice and where that competent authority and the institution of the EU concerned can do so without prejudice to the interests of the European Union.
4. The EU institutions cooperate at any time with the competent authorities of the Member States to facilitate the proper administration of justice and ensure that any abuse of the immunities granted under this article is prevented.
5. If a competent authority or judicial entity of a Member State considers that there has been an abuse of immunity granted under this article, the competent authority of the State of origin and the relevant institution of the EU shall consult, upon request, the competent authority of the Member State in question to determine whether such abuse has taken place.
6. If consultations do not result in satisfactory results for both parties, the competent EU institution shall examine the dispute with a view to reaching a settlement.
7. Where such a dispute cannot be resolved, the terms and conditions of its regulation shall be decided by the competent EU institution. As far as the Council is concerned, it adopts these terms by unanimously deciding.
PART III
PROVISIONS AGAINST GENERAL QUARTERS AND FORCES, INSTRUMENTS TO MILITARY PERSONNEL AND WORKING CIVIL FOR SE
ARTICLE 9
As part of the preparation and execution of the tasks referred to in Article 17, paragraph 2, of the TEU, including during exercises, headquarters and forces and their personnel referred to in Article 1^er, with their equipment, are authorized to transit and be temporarily deployed in the territory of a Member State, subject to the agreement of the competent authorities of the Member State.
ARTICLE 10
Military and civilian personnel receive emergency medical and dental care, including hospitalization, under the same conditions as the equivalent staff of the State of residence.
ARTICLE 11
Subject to the agreements and arrangements already in force or which may, after the entry into force of this Agreement, be entered into by the authorized representatives of the States of residence and of origin, the authorities of the State of residence shall assume the sole responsibility of taking the appropriate measures to ensure that the buildings and lands they require are made available to the units, formations or other entities, as well as the equipment and services thereof. These agreements and arrangements are, to the extent possible, in accordance with the regulations governing the housing and cantonment of units, formations or other similar entities of the State of residence.
In the absence of a specific arrangement stipulating the contrary, the rights and obligations arising from the occupation or use of buildings, land, equipment or services are governed by the law of the State of residence.
ARTICLE 12
1. Units, formations or entities regularly constituted by military or civilian personnel have the right to police, under an agreement with the State of residence, in all camps, establishments, headquarters or other facilities occupied exclusively by them. The police of these units, formations or entities may take all necessary measures to ensure the maintenance of order and security in these settings.
2. The use of the police referred to in paragraph 1 outside of these premises is subordinate to an agreement with the authorities of the State of residence, is in liaison with them and intervenes only as long as it is necessary to maintain order and discipline among the members of the units, formations or entities.
ARTICLE 13
1. Military personnel may hold and carry weapons of service provided that their orders authorize it and subject to arrangements with the authorities of the State of residence.
2. Civilian personnel may hold and carry weapons of service provided that they are authorized by the regulations in force in the State of origin and subject to the agreement of the authorities of the State of residence.
ARTICLE 14
General quarters and forces benefit from the same post, telecommunications and transport facilities and the same tariff reductions as the forces of the State of residence, in accordance with the rules and regulations of that State.
ARTICLE 15
1. The archives and other official records of a headquarters in the premises assigned to that headquarters or held by any duly authorized member of that headquarters are inviolable, except in the event that the headquarters has waived this immunity. At the request of the State of residence and in the presence of a representative of that State, the headquarters shall verify the nature of the documents in order to confirm that they are covered by the immunity referred to in this article.
2. If a competent authority or judicial body of the State of residence considers that an abuse of inviolability conferred by this article has occurred, the Council shall, upon request, consult with the competent authorities of the State of residence to determine whether such abuse has occurred.
3. If the consultations do not result in satisfactory results for the two parties concerned, the dispute is considered by the Commission for its resolution. When such a dispute has not been resolved, the terms and conditions of its resolution are adopted by the Council unanimously.
ARTICLE 16
In order to avoid double taxation, for the application of the double taxation agreements between the Member States and without prejudice to the right of the State of residence to impose on members of the military and civilian personnel who are its nationals or who usually reside in its territory:
1. If, in the State of residence, the establishment of any tax is dependent on the residence or domicile of the debtor, the periods in which military or civilian personnel are present in the territory of that State, solely because of its quality of military or civil personnel, are not considered, for the establishment of that tax, as periods of residence or as resulting in a change of residence or domicile.
2. Members of the military and civil personnel are exempted in the State of residence of any tax on the salaries and emoluments paid to them in this capacity by the State of origin, as well as on all tangible property belonging to them and whose existence in the State of residence is due only to their temporary presence in that State.
3. The provisions of this article shall not in any way oppose the collection of taxes to which a member of the military or civilian personnel is subject in respect of a profit activity, other than his employment as a member of that staff, that he may exercise in the State of residence, and, except in respect of the treatment, emoluments and tangible property, referred to in paragraph 2, the provisions of this article shall not be deemed to be
4. The provisions of this article shall not apply to rights. "Rights" means customs duties and all other duties and taxes affecting, as the case may be, import or export, with the exception of duties and taxes that constitute a refund of fees for services rendered.
ARTICLE 17
1. The authorities of the State of origin have the right to exercise all the powers of criminal and disciplinary jurisdiction conferred upon them by the legislation of the State of origin on military personnel, as well as on civilian personnel when it is subject to the legislation applicable to all or part of the armed forces of the State of origin because of its deployment to the side of these forces.
2. The authorities of the State of residence have the right to exercise their jurisdiction over the members of the military and civil personnel, as well as on the persons responsible for the members of that staff, with regard to the offences committed in the territory of the State of residence and punished by the law of that State.
3. The authorities of the State of origin have the right to exercise exclusive jurisdiction over military personnel as well as on civilian personnel when the latter is subject to the legislation applicable to all or part of the armed forces of the State of origin because of its deployment to the side of these forces with regard to the offences punishable by the legislation of the State of origin, including the offences which violate the security of that State, but do not fall under the law of residence.
4. The authorities of the State of residence have the right to exercise an exclusive jurisdiction over military and civil personnel, as well as on the persons in charge of them, with regard to the offences punishable by the laws of the State of residence, including offences which infringe the security of that State, but do not fall under the law of the State of origin.
5. For the purposes of paragraphs 3, 4 and 6, are considered to be offences that infringe upon the security of a State:
(a) betrayal;
(b) sabotage, espionage or violation of the law relating to State secrets or national defence of that State.
6. In competing jurisdictions, the following rules apply:
(a) The competent authorities of the State of origin have the right to exercise by priority their jurisdiction over military personnel as well as on civilian personnel when the latter is subject to the laws applicable to all or part of the armed forces of the State of origin, because of its deployment to the side of these forces, with regard to:
(i) offences that affect only the security or property of that State or offences that affect only the person or property of a member of the military or civilian personnel of that State, or a dependant;
(ii) the offences resulting from any act or negligence committed in the performance of the duties.
(b) In the case of any other offence, the authorities of the State of residence have the right to exercise their jurisdiction by priority.
(c) If the State which has the right to exercise its jurisdiction by priority decides to waive it, it shall notify the authorities of the other State as soon as possible. The authorities of the State which has the right to exercise by priority its jurisdiction shall consider carefully the requests to waive this right, submitted by the authorities of the other State, when the State considers that this waiver is of particular importance.
7. The provisions of this article shall not include for the authorities of the State of origin any right to exercise jurisdiction over persons who are nationals of the State of residence or who have their habitual residence there, unless they are members of the forces of the State of origin.
ARTICLE 18
1. Each Member State shall waive any claim for compensation against another Member State for damages caused to the property of the State that are used in the preparation and execution of the missions referred to in Article 17, paragraph 2, of the EU, including in exercises:
(a) if the damage is caused by a member of the military or civilian personnel of the other Member State, in the performance of his or her duties under the above-mentioned missions, or
(b) if it is caused by a vehicle, vessel or aircraft of the other Member State used by its forces, provided that the vehicle, vessel or aircraft cause injury has been used in the above-mentioned missions or that the damage has been caused to property used under the same conditions.
Requests for marine lifesaving allowances made by a Member State against another Member State shall be waived, provided that the vessel or cargo saved shall be the property of a Member State and shall be used by its armed forces in the aforementioned missions.
2. (a) In the case of damage caused or occurring as provided for in paragraph 1 in respect of other property of a Member State located in the territory of the Member State, the liability of any other Member State and the amount of damage shall be determined by negotiation between such Member States, provided that the Member States concerned do not agree in any other manner.
(b) However, each Member State shall waive compensation if the amount of damage is less than an amount determined by a unanimous decision of the Council.
Any other Member State whose property was damaged in the same incident also waives its claim to the amount indicated above.
3. For the purposes of paragraphs 1^er and 2, the terms "property of a Member State" in the case of a ship apply to any ship chartered naked by that Member State, or requisitioned by it with a bare inshell charter contract, or a good take, unless the risk of loss or liability is borne by another entity other than that Member State.
4. Each Member State shall waive a claim for compensation to another Member State in the event that a member of the military or civilian personnel of its services has suffered injury or died in the performance of its duties.
5. Claims for compensation (other than those resulting from the application of a contract and those to which paragraphs 6 or 7 are applicable) of the conductor of acts or negligence of which a member of the military or civil personnel is responsible in the performance of his or her duties or of the head of any other act, negligence or incident of which a force is legally responsible and which have caused damage to a third party other than the following State of stay
(a) the claims for compensation shall be introduced, investigated and the decisions taken, in accordance with the laws and regulations of the State of residence with respect to claims arising out of the activities of its own armed forces;
(b) the State of residence may decide on such requests; the payment of the amount agreed or fixed by a decision in its own currency;
(c) this payment, which is the result of the direct settlement of the case or of a decision of the competent jurisdiction of the State of residence, or the final decision of the same jurisdiction dismissing the applicant, definitively binding the Member States concerned;
(d) any compensation paid by the State of residence shall be brought to the attention of interested States of origin who receive at the same time a detailed report and a proposal of distribution established in accordance with (e), (i), (ii) and (iii). If there is no response within two months, the proposal is considered to be accepted;
(e) the burden of compensation for damages referred to in (a), (b), (c), and (d) and paragraph 2 shall be apportioned among member States under the following conditions:
(i) where a single State of origin is responsible, the amount agreed or fixed by a decision shall be apportioned to a maximum of 25% for a State of residence and 75% for a State of origin;
(ii) where more than one State is responsible for the damage, the amount agreed or fixed by a decision shall be divided between them by equal shares; However, if the State of residence is not one of the responsible states, its share is half that of each State of origin;
(iii) if the damage is caused by the services of the Member States without the possibility of assigning it in a specific manner to one or more of these services, the amount agreed or fixed by a decision shall also be apportioned among the Member States concerned; However, if the State of residence is not one of the States whose services have caused the damage, its share is half that of each State of origin;
(iv) semi-annually, a statement of sums paid by the State of residence during the preceding semester for cases for which a percentage distribution has been admitted, is sent to the States of origin concerned with a claim for reimbursement. The refund is made as soon as possible in the currency of the State of residence;
(f) if the application of points (b) and (e) were to impose on a Member State a burden that would affect it too heavily, that Member State may request that the other Member States concerned settle the matter by negotiation between them on a different basis;
(g) no way of execution may be carried out on a member of the military or civilian personnel when a judgment has been pronounced against him in the State of residence if it is a matter arising from the exercise of his or her functions;
(h) except to the extent or (e) applies to claims for compensation covered by subsection 2, the provisions of this subsection shall not apply to any claim for compensation in the case of navigation or operation of a ship, loading or unloading or transportation of a cargo, unless there has been death or injury of a person and subsection 4 is not applicable.
6. Claims for compensation against military or civilian personnel based on damages or negligence that have not been committed in the performance of duties are resolved as follows:
(a) the authorities of the State of Residence shall instruct the claim for compensation and shall establish in a fair and equitable manner the compensation due to the applicant, taking into account all the circumstances of the case, including the conduct and conduct of the injured person, and shall prepare a report on the case;
(b) this report shall be sent to the authorities of the State of origin, who shall then decide without delay if they shall make a gratuitous compensation, and in that case determine the amount thereof;
(c) if an offer of gratis compensation is made and accepted as a full compensation by the applicant, the authorities of the State of origin themselves make this payment and make known to the authorities of the State of residence their decision and the amount of the sum paid;
(d) the provisions of this paragraph shall not affect the jurisdiction of the courts of the State of residence to rule on the action that may be brought against a member of the military or civilian personnel, provided that a fully satisfactory payment has not yet been made.
7. Claims for compensation based on the unauthorized use of any vehicle of the services of a State of origin shall be processed in accordance with paragraph 6, except where the unit, training or entity in question is legally responsible.
8. If there is a dispute as to whether the wrongful act or negligence of a member of the military or civilian personnel were committed in the performance of the duties, or whether the use of a vehicle belonging to the services of a State of origin had not been authorized, the matter is settled by negotiation between the Member States concerned.
9. Except as provided in paragraph 5 (g), the State of origin may not, with respect to the civil jurisdiction of the courts of the State of residence, avail itself of the immunity of jurisdiction of the courts of the State of residence in favour of military or civil personnel.
10. The authorities of the State of origin and of the State of residence lend themselves assistance in the search for evidence necessary for a fair review and settlement with regard to claims of compensation which are of interest to the Member States.
11. Disputes related to claims of compensation which cannot be settled by negotiation between the Member States concerned are subject to an arbitrator chosen by mutual agreement by the Member States concerned among nationals of the State of residence who occupy or have held high judicial functions. If the Member States concerned fail to agree on the choice of an arbitrator within two months, each Member State concerned may request the President of the Court of Justice of the European Communities to appoint a person with the above qualifications.
PART IV
FINAL PROVISIONS
ARTICLE 19
1. This Agreement shall be subject to the approval of the Member States in accordance with their respective constitutional rules.
2. Member States shall notify the Secretary General of the Council of the European Union of the fulfilment of the constitutional procedures required for the approval of this Agreement.
3. This Agreement comes into force on the first day of the second month following the notification by the last Member State of the fulfilment of its constitutional procedures.
4. The Secretary General of the Council of the European Union is depositary of this Agreement. The depositary publishes this agreement in the Official Journal of the European Union, as well as information relating to its entry into force after the completion of the constitutional procedures referred to in paragraph 2.
5. (a) This Agreement shall apply only to the metropolitan territory of the Member States.
(b) Any Member State may notify the Secretary General of the Council of the European Union that this Agreement also applies to other territories whose international relations are under its responsibility.
6. (a) The provisions of Parts I and III of this Agreement shall apply only to headquarters and to the forces, as well as to their personnel, which may be made available to the EU in the preparation and execution of the tasks referred to in Article 17, paragraph 2, of the EU, including in exercises, to the extent that the status of these headquarters or forces, and that of their personnel, is not governed by another agreement.
(b) Where the status of these headquarters and their forces, as well as their personnel, is governed by another agreement and that these headquarters and forces, as well as their staff, act within the framework mentioned above, specific arrangements may be made between the EU and the States or organizations concerned in order to determine the agreement applicable to the operation or exercise concerned.
(c) Where it has not been possible to enter into such specific arrangements, the other agreement will remain applicable to the operation or exercise.
7. In cases where third countries participate in activities to which this Agreement is applicable, agreements or arrangements governing such participation may include a provision that this Agreement is also applicable to third countries in such activities.
8. The provisions of this Agreement may be amended if the representatives of the governments of the Member States of the European Union, gathered within the Council, agree unanimously.
Done in Brussels on 17 November 2003.

Agreement between the Member States of the European Union concerning the status of military and civilian personnel seconded to the institutions of the European Union, the headquarters and the forces that can be made available to the European Union in the preparation and execution of the missions referred to in Article 17, paragraph 2, of the Treaty on the European Union, including during exercises, and the military and civil personnel of the Member States made available to act in the European Union 2003
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