Key Benefits:
Original text
(State on 16 January 2012)
The Swiss Confederation
(hereinafter 'Switzerland')
And the Principality of Liechtenstein
(hereinafter 'Liechtenstein'),
And,
The European Community,
On the other hand,
Having regard to the agreement signed on 26 October 2004 between the European Union, the European Community and the Swiss Confederation on the association of the Swiss Confederation with the implementation, application and development of the Schengen acquis 1 (hereinafter 'the Agreement'),
Having regard to the Protocol signed on 28 February 2008 between the European Union, the European Community, the Swiss Confederation and the Principality of Liechtenstein on the accession of the Principality of Liechtenstein to the Agreement between the European Union, the Community And the Swiss Confederation on the association of the Swiss Confederation with the implementation, application and development of the Schengen acquis ('the Protocol '),
Having regard to the Joint Declaration of the European Union, the European Community, the Swiss Confederation and the Principality of Liechtenstein concerning the European Agency for the Management of Operational Cooperation at the External Borders of the Member States of the European Union, attached to the Protocol,
Having regard to the Agreement between the European Community, the Republic of Iceland and the Kingdom of Norway on the arrangements for the participation of these States in the activities of the European Agency for the Management of Operational Cooperation at the Border External member states of the European Union 2 ,
Whereas:
(1) By Regulation (EC) No O 2007/2004 Council of 26 October 2004 3 (hereinafter 'the Regulation'), the European Community established the European Agency for the Management of Operational Cooperation at the External Borders of the Member States of the European Union (hereinafter 'the Agency').
(2) The Regulation constitutes a development of the Schengen acquis within the meaning of the Agreement and the Protocol.
(3) The Regulation confirms that countries associated with the implementation, application and development of the Schengen acquis should participate fully in the activities of the Agency, albeit with limited voting rights.
(4) The Principality of Liechtenstein does not have external borders subject to the application of the Schengen Borders Code.
(5) The Agreement and the Protocol do not deal with the modalities of the association of Switzerland and Liechtenstein with the activities of new bodies created by the European Union in the context of the development of the Schengen acquis, and certain aspects Of this association in the work of the Agency must be settled in a complementary arrangement between the parties to the agreement and the protocol,
Agreed to the following provisions:
Switzerland and Liechtenstein shall be represented on the Board of Directors of the Agency in accordance with the procedure referred to in Art. 21, para. 3, of the Regulation.
2. Switzerland has voting rights:
3. Liechtenstein has voting rights:
Switzerland shall contribute to the Agency's budget in accordance with the percentage referred to in Art. 11, para. 3, of the agreement.
Liechtenstein shall contribute to the Agency's budget in accordance with Art. 3 of the Protocol which refers to the contribution terms set out in Art. 11, para. 3, of the agreement.
1. Directive 95 /46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 October 1995 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and the free movement of such data 1 Is applicable to the personal data transmitted by the Agency to the Swiss and Liechtenstein authorities.
2. Regulation (EC) No O 2001/45 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the Community institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data Data 2 Applies to personal data transmitted to the Agency by the Swiss and Liechtenstein authorities.
3. Switzerland and Liechtenstein respect the rules on the confidentiality of documents held by the Agency as set out in the rules of procedure of the Management Board.
The Agency has legal personality in Swiss and Liechtenstein law and enjoys, in Switzerland and Liechtenstein, the widest legal capacity accorded to legal persons under Swiss and Liechtenstein legislation. It may, in particular, acquire or dispose of movable and immovable property and may be a party to legal proceedings.
The liability of the Agency is governed by the provisions of s. 19, para. 1, 3 and 5 of the Regulation.
Switzerland and Liechtenstein recognise the competence of the Court of Justice of the European Communities in respect of the Agency, in accordance with Art. 19, para. 2 and 4 of the Regulation.
2. Civil liability disputes are settled in accordance with s. 10 Ter , paras. 4, of the Regulation as amended by Regulation (EC) No O 863/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 July 2007 establishing a mechanism for the establishment of Rapid Border Intervention Teams and amending Regulation (EC) No O 2007/2004 of the Council with regard to this mechanism and defining the tasks and competences of the invited agents 1 .
1 OJ L 199, 31.7.2007, p. 30.
Switzerland and Liechtenstein shall apply to the Agency and its staff the Protocol on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Communities, which is annexed to this Agreement.
(2) The Annex to this Agreement, including in respect of Switzerland, the Appendix relating to the procedures for the application of the Protocol on Privileges and Immunities, is an integral part of this Agreement.
Switzerland and Liechtenstein shall apply the rules concerning Agency staff, adopted in accordance with the Protocol on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Communities.
2. Notwithstanding s. 12, para. 2, point (a) of the Conditions of Employment of other servants of the European Communities, Swiss and Liechtenstein nationals enjoying their civil rights may be contracted by the Executive Director of the Agency.
3. However, Swiss and Liechtenstein nationals may not be appointed to the positions of Executive Director or Deputy Executive Director of the Agency.
4. Swiss and Liechtenstein nationals cannot be elected President or Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors.
The Secretary-General of the Council of the European Union shall be the depositary of this Agreement.
2. The European Community, Switzerland and Liechtenstein shall approve this Agreement in accordance with their own procedures.
3. The entry into force of this Agreement shall be subject to the approval of the European Community and at least one other party to this Agreement.
(4) This Agreement shall enter into force in respect of each Party on the first day of the first month following the deposit of its instrument of approval with the depositary.
5. With respect to Liechtenstein, this Agreement shall apply from the date of entry into force of the provisions referred to in Art. 2 of the Protocol, in accordance with Art. 10 of the protocol.
(1) This Agreement is concluded for an unlimited period.
(2) This Agreement shall cease to be in force six months after the agreement has been denounced by Switzerland or by decision of the Council of the European Union, or is dissolved in accordance with the procedures referred to in Art. 7, para. 4, art. 10 or art. 17 of the agreement.
(3) This Agreement shall cease to be in force six months after the Protocol has been denounced by Liechtenstein or by decision of the Council of the European Union, or is dissolved in accordance with the procedure referred to in Art. 3, art. 5, para. 4, and art. 11, para. 1 or 3, of the protocol.
This Agreement and the joint declarations annexed thereto shall be drawn up in a single original in the English, Bulgarian, Danish, Danish, Spanish, Estonian, Finnish, French, Greek, Hungarian and Italian languages. Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovenian, Swedish and Czech, each of these texts being equally authentic.
Done at Brussels, 30 September 2009.
The premises and buildings of the Communities shall be inviolable. They may not be searched, requisition, confiscation or expropriation. The assets and assets of the Communities shall not be subject to any measure of administrative or judicial constraint without the authorisation of the Court of Justice.
The archives of the Communities shall be inviolable.
The Communities, their assets, income and other property are exempt from all direct taxes. The governments of the Member States shall, wherever possible, take appropriate measures for the remission or refund of indirect rights or sales taxes in the price of immovable or movable property, where For their official use, Communities shall make large purchases of which the price includes duties and taxes of that nature. However, the application of those provisions must not have the effect of distorting competition within the Communities.
No exemption is granted in respect of taxes and duties which constitute mere remuneration for services of general utility.
The Communities shall be exempt from any customs duty, prohibition and restriction of import and export in respect of articles intended for their official use; the articles so imported shall not be sold for consideration or free of charge on the Territory of the country in which they have been introduced, except under conditions approved by the Government of that country.
They are also exempt from customs duties and any prohibition and restriction of import and export in respect of their publications.
The European Coal and Steel Community may hold any currency and have accounts in any currency.
For their official communications and the transfer of all their documents, the institutions of the Communities shall enjoy in the territory of each Member State the treatment accorded by that State to diplomatic missions.
Official correspondence and other official communications of the institutions of the Communities cannot be censored.
1. Passes the form of which is adopted by the Council and which are recognised as valid circulation titles by the authorities of the Member States may be issued to the members and servants of the institutions of the Communities by the Presidents of these. Such passes shall be issued to officials and other servants under the conditions laid down by the Staff Regulations of Officials and the Conditions of Other Servants of the Communities. The Commission may enter into agreements with a view to the recognition of such passes as valid titles of movement within the territory of third States.
2. However, the provisions of s. 6 of the Protocol on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Coal and Steel Community shall remain applicable to the members and servants of the institutions which, upon the entry into force of this Treaty, are in possession of the laissez-passer Audit clause, until the application of the provisions of s. 1 of this article.
There shall be no administrative or other restriction on the free movement of Members of the European Parliament to or from the place of meeting of the European Parliament.
Members of the European Parliament shall be granted customs and foreign exchange control:
Members of the European Parliament may not be sought, detained or prosecuted because of the opinions or votes cast by them in the performance of their duties.
During the sessions of the European Parliament, the members of the European Parliament shall be entitled to:
Immunity also covers them when they travel to or from the place of meeting of the European Parliament.
Immunity cannot be invoked in the case of flagrante delicto, nor can it interfere with the right of the European Parliament to waive the immunity of one of its members.
The representatives of the Member States participating in the work of the institutions of the Communities as well as their advisers and technical experts shall enjoy, during the performance of their duties and during the course of their journeys to or from the Place of the meeting, privileges, immunities or facilities of use.
This Article shall also apply to members of the advisory bodies of the Communities.
In the territory of each Member State, officials and other servants of the Communities, irrespective of their nationality:
Under the conditions and in accordance with the procedure laid down by the Council acting on a proposal from the Commission, officials and other servants of the Communities shall be subject to a tax on salaries, wages and emoluments Paid by them.
They shall be exempt from national taxes on the salaries, wages and emoluments paid by the Communities.
For the application of income and capital taxes, inheritance rights and conventions for the avoidance of double taxation between the Member States of the Communities, officials and other servants of the Communities which, solely because of the exercise of their duties in the service of the Communities, establish their residence in the territory of a Member State other than the country of the tax domicile that they possess at the time of entry into the service of the Communities are considered, both in the country of their residence and in the country of the tax home, As having retained their residence in the latter country if the latter is a member of the Communities. This provision shall also apply to the spouse, to the extent that the spouse does not carry on his or her own professional activity, as well as the dependent children and the care of the persons referred to in this Article.
Personal property belonging to the persons referred to in the preceding paragraph and situated in the territory of the State of residence shall be exempt from the inheritance tax in that State. For the purpose of establishing such a tax, they shall be regarded as being in the State of the tax domicile, subject to the rights of third States and the possible application of the provisions of the international conventions relating to double standards. Impositions.
Home acquired due solely to the performance of duties in the service of other international organizations shall not be taken into account in the application of the provisions of this Article.
The Council, acting unanimously on a proposal from the Commission, shall lay down the system of social benefits applicable to officials and other servants of the Communities.
The Council, acting on a proposal from the Commission and after consulting the other institutions concerned, shall determine the categories of officials and other servants of the Communities to which the provisions of Art. 12, art. 13, second paragraph, and art. 14.
The names, quality and addresses of officials and other servants included in these categories shall be communicated periodically to the governments of the Member States.
The Member State in whose territory the seat of the Communities is situated shall grant the missions of third countries accredited to the Communities the diplomatic immunities and privileges of use.
Privileges, immunities and facilities shall be granted to officials and other servants of the Communities solely in the interest of the Communities.
Each institution of the Communities shall be required to waive the immunity granted to an official or other agent in all cases in which it considers that the waiver of such immunity is not contrary to the interests of the Communities.
For the purposes of the application of this Protocol, the institutions of the Communities shall act in concert with the responsible authorities of the Member States concerned.
Art. 12 to 15 inclusive and art. 18 are applicable to the members of the Commission.
Art. 12 to 15 and art. 18 shall apply to the Judges, the Advocates-General, the Registrar and the Assistant Rapporteurs of the Court, as well as to the members and the Registrar of the Court of First Instance, without prejudice to the provisions of Art. 3 of the Protocol on the Statute of the Court of Justice relating to immunity from jurisdiction of judges and Advocates-General.
This Protocol shall also apply to the European Investment Bank, the members of its bodies, its staff and representatives of the Member States participating in its work, without prejudice to the provisions of the Protocol on Status of the report.
The European Central Bank shall, in addition, be exempt from taxation and parafiscal taxation on the occasion of increases in its capital and various formalities which such operations may involve in the State of the seat. Similarly, its dissolution and liquidation do not result in any perception. Finally, the activity of the Bank and its bodies, under the statutory conditions, does not give rise to the application of turnover taxes.
This Protocol shall also apply to the European Central Bank, its members and its staff, without prejudice to the provisions of the Protocol on the Statute of the European System of Central Banks and of the Central Bank European.
In addition, the European Central Bank will be exempt from taxation and parafiscal taxation on the occasion of increases in its capital as well as various formalities which such operations may involve in the State of the seat. The activity of the Bank and its bodies, exercising under the conditions laid down in the Statute of the European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank, does not give rise to the application of turnover taxes.
The above provisions also apply to the European Monetary Institute. Its dissolution and liquidation shall not result in any perception.
Any reference made to the Member States in the Protocol on the privileges and immunities of the European Communities (hereinafter 'the Protocol') must be understood as including Switzerland, unless the following provisions Otherwise agree.
Goods and services exported outside Switzerland are not subject to the Swiss Value Added Tax (VAT). As regards the goods and services provided to the Agency in Switzerland for its official use, the exemption from VAT is effected, in accordance with Art. 3, para. 2, of the Protocol, by means of reimbursement. The exemption from VAT shall be granted if the actual purchase price of the goods and services mentioned in the invoice or equivalent document amounts to a total of at least 100 Swiss francs (tax included).
The VAT refund is granted on presentation to the Federal Contributions Administration, Main Division of VAT, of the Swiss forms provided for that purpose. Applications shall be processed, in principle, within three months of the filing of the refund application together with the necessary supporting documents.
With regard to art. 13, para. 2, of the Protocol, Switzerland exempts, in accordance with the principles of its domestic law, officials and other servants of the Agency within the meaning of Art. 2 of the Regulation (Euratom, ECSC, EEC) O 549/69 of 25 March 1969 (OJ L 74, 27.3.1969, p. (1) Federal, cantonal and communal taxes on salaries, wages and emoluments paid by the Community and submitted to the Community for the benefit of an internal tax.
Switzerland shall not be regarded as a Member State within the meaning of paragraph 1 of this Appendix for the application of Art. 14 of the protocol.
Officials and other servants of the Agency, as well as members of their families who are affiliated with the social insurance system applicable to officials and other servants of the Community, are not necessarily subject to the Swiss system Social insurance.
The Court of Justice of the European Communities shall have exclusive competence for all matters concerning relations between the Agency or the Commission and its staff with regard to the application of the Regulation (EEC, Euratom, ECSC) n O 259/68 (OJ L 56, 4.3.1968, p. 1) and the other provisions of Community law laying down the working conditions.
The European Community, the Government of the Swiss Confederation and the Government of the Principality of Liechtenstein,
Having concluded an arrangement on the arrangements for the participation of the Swiss Confederation and the Principality of Liechtenstein in the activities of the European Agency for the Management of Operational Cooperation at the External Borders of States Members of the European Union in accordance with Art. 21, para. 3, of Regulation (EC) No O 2007/2004 of the Council,
Jointly make the following statement:
The voting rights provided for in the said Agreement are justified by the special links with Switzerland and Liechtenstein arising from the association of these States with the implementation, application and development of the Schengen acquis.
The voting rights are exceptional due to the specific nature of the Schengen cooperation and to the specific position of Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
They cannot therefore be regarded as a legal or political precedent for any other area of cooperation between the parties to the Agreement or for the participation of other third States in the activities of other agencies of the Union.
Such voting rights may under no circumstances be exercised in respect of decisions of a regulatory or legislative nature.
If a Rapid Border Intervention Team is deployed within the framework of the European Agency for the Management of Operational Cooperation at the External Borders of the Member States of the European Union, Art. 10, para. 4, of Regulation (EC) No O 863/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 July 2007 establishing a mechanism for the establishment of Rapid Border Intervention Teams and amending Regulation (EC) No O 2007/2004 of the Council with regard to this mechanism and defining the tasks and competences of the invited agents, applies in matters of civil liability.
| States Parties |
Ratification |
Entry into force |
||
| Liechtenstein |
15 December |
2011 |
1 Er January |
2012 |
| Switzerland |
20 November |
2009 |
1 Er August |
2010 |
| European Union |
July 29 |
2010 |
1 Er August |
2010 |
1 RO 2010 3589 , 2012 529.
