The Federal Council guarantees the independence and freedom of action of the World Intellectual Property Organization (hereafter referred to as the Organization) as an international institution.

2. It recognizes in particular, as well as to its members in their relations with it, an absolute freedom of assembly, with freedom of discussion and decision.

The Federal Council recognizes the international personality and legal capacity of the Organization.

The Organization shall enjoy all the immunities and privileges normally accorded to international organizations.

1. Buildings or parts of buildings and the adjoining land which, whatever the owner, are used for the purposes of the Organization shall be inviolable. No official of the Swiss public authority shall enter without the express consent of the Organization. Only the Director General of the Organization or his duly authorized representative shall be competent to waive such inviolability.

2. The archives of the Organization and, in general, all documents intended for his official use, which belong to him or are in his possession, shall be inviolable at any time and place that they are located.

3. The Organization shall exercise control and the police of its premises.

The Organization shall enjoy immunity from criminal, civil and administrative jurisdiction, except to the extent that such immunity has been formally waived by the Director General of the Organization or his duly authorized representative. The inclusion in a contract of a jurisdiction clause before a Swiss ordinary court constitutes a formal waiver of immunity. However, unless expressly stated otherwise, such a waiver does not extend to implementing measures.

2. Buildings or parts of buildings, the adjoining land and property, property of the Organization or used by the Organization for its purposes, whether or not they are its property, shall not be searched, requisition, seizure or Execution measure.

The Organization shall enjoy, in its official communications, at least as favourable treatment as that provided to other international institutions in Switzerland, to the extent consistent with the International Convention on Telecommunications ¹ .

2. The Organization shall have the right to use codes for its official communications. It shall also have the right to send and receive correspondence by duly identified letters or suitcases which enjoy the same privileges and immunities as diplomatic couriers and bags.

3. Official correspondence and other duly authenticated official communications of the Organization shall not be censored.

There will be no restrictions on the import and export of United Nations publications.

1. The Organization, its assets, income and other property are exempt from direct federal, cantonal and communal taxes. However, for real property, this exemption will apply only to those whose services are owned and occupied by the Organization, as well as to the revenues derived from it. The Organization shall not be liable to a tax on the rent it pays for premises rented by it and occupied by its services.

2. The Organization is exempt from federal, cantonal and communal indirect taxes. With respect to federal tax on turnover, included in prices or transferred in an apparent way, however, the exemption is only permitted for acquisitions for the official use of the Organization, provided that the Amount invoiced for one acquisition alone exceeds 100 Swiss francs.

3. The Organization shall be exempt from all federal, cantonal and communal taxes, provided that they are not taxes levied in respect of specific services rendered.

4. Where applicable, the above exemptions shall be effected by way of reimbursement, at the request of the Organization and following a procedure to be determined by the Organization and the competent Swiss authorities.

The customs processing of objects intended for the Organisation shall be governed by the Customs Regulation of the Federal Council applicable to international organisations, which shall form an integral part of this Agreement.

Switzerland shall grant advances to the Organization if the working capital of the Organization or of a Union is insufficient. The amount of such advances and the conditions under which they are granted shall be subject, in each case, to a separate agreement between it and the Organization.

2. As long as it is required to grant advances, Switzerland shall have an ex officio seat on the Coordination Committee and the Executive Committees of the Unions.

Switzerland and the Organization shall each have the right to denounce the undertaking to grant advances, subject to notification in writing. Denunciation shall take effect three years after the end of the year in which it was notified.

1. The Organization may receive, hold, convert and transfer any funds of any kind, gold, currency, numerary and other securities, and freely dispose of it both within Switzerland and in its foreign relations.

2. This Article shall apply to the Member States in their relations with the Organisation.

(1) The Swiss authorities shall take all necessary measures to facilitate the entry into Switzerland, the exit of that territory and the stay of all persons, irrespective of their nationality, called in official capacity with the The Organization:

(a)

Representatives of the Member States;

(b)

The Director General and the staff of the Organization;

(c)

Any other person, regardless of nationality, who is called in official capacity with the Organization.

2. All measures concerning the Federal Police of Foreigners and aiming to restrict the entry into Switzerland of foreigners or to control the conditions of their stay shall be without application in respect of the persons referred to in this Article.

The representatives of the members of the Organization and of the Unions at the general meetings, conferences and other meetings shall enjoy in Switzerland the following privileges and immunities:

(a)

Inviolability of the person, place of residence and any objects of interest belonging to the person concerned;

(b)

Immunity from arrest or detention and, in respect of acts performed by them in the performance of their duties, including their words and writings, immunity from any jurisdiction;

(c)

Customs facilities granted in accordance with the Customs Regulation of the Federal Council applicable to international organisations;

(d)

The same immunities and facilities in respect of their personal baggage as those accorded to representatives of other intergovernmental organizations in Switzerland;

(e)

The right to use figures in their official communications and to receive or send documents or correspondence through couriers or diplomatic bags duly sealed;

(f)

Exemption for themselves and their spouses in respect of all immigration restrictive measures, of all formalities for the registration of foreigners and of all national service obligations;

(g)

Exemption from restrictions on freedom of exchange under conditions identical to those granted to representatives of foreign governments on official missions.

1. The Director General of the Organization and the officials of categories designated by him with the consent of the Federal Council shall enjoy the privileges and immunities, exemptions and facilities accorded to diplomatic agents in accordance with the law International people and uses.

2. Customs privileges and facilities shall be granted in accordance with the customs regulations.

The officials of the Organization, irrespective of their nationality, are in favour of the exemption from any jurisdiction for acts performed in the performance of their duties, including words and writings, even after such persons Have ceased to be public servants.

Officials of the Organization who do not have Swiss nationality:

(a)

Are exempt from any obligation relating to the national service in Switzerland;

(b)

They are not subject to the provisions restricting immigration and the registration formalities of foreigners, nor are their spouses and family members dependent on them;

(c)

Enjoy, as regards the exchange facilities, the same privileges as those accorded to officials of other international organizations;

(d)

Enjoy, as well as family members and domestic staff, the same repatriation facilities as officials of other international organizations;

(e)

Shall enjoy, in respect of customs, facilities provided for in the Customs Regulation of the Federal Council, applicable to international organisations;

(f)

Shall enjoy the exemption of all federal, cantonal and communal taxes on salaries, emoluments and allowances paid to them by the Organization. Also exempt in Switzerland from any taxes on capital and income, at the time of payment, the capital benefits payable under any circumstances by a pension fund or an institution of foresight in the sense of Of Art. 18 of this Agreement; the same shall apply to all benefits that could be paid to officers, employees or employees of the Organization as compensation for sickness, accident, etc.

Nothing in this Agreement shall limit the exercise by officials of the Organization of Official Functions within the International Bureaux for the Protection of Intellectual Property (BIRPI) and of the Union for the Plant variety protection (UPOV).

2. The privileges and immunities of officials who perform functions referred to in c. 1 above shall be governed by this Agreement.

1. Any pension fund or provident institution officially exercising its activity in favour of the officials of the Organisation shall have the legal capacity in Switzerland, if it observes the forms provided for in that effect by Swiss law. It shall enjoy, to the extent of its activity in favour of such officials, the same exemptions, immunities and privileges as the Organization itself.

(2) Funds and foundations, whether or not they have a legal personality, administered under the auspices of the Organization and assigned to its official purposes, shall enjoy the same exemptions, immunities and privileges as the Organization itself, in respect of Their movable property.

The Organization shall be exempt from all mandatory contributions to general social welfare institutions, such as compensation funds, unemployment insurance funds, accident insurance, etc., on the understanding that the Organization Ensure, to the extent possible and under conditions to be agreed, membership in the Swiss insurance systems of those of its agents who are not insured by equivalent social protection.

1. The privileges and immunities provided for in this Agreement shall not be established for the purpose of granting staff members of the Organization Personal Benefits and conveniences. They shall be established solely in order to ensure, in all circumstances, the free functioning of the Organization and the complete independence of its agents.

2. The Director General of the Organization shall have the right and the duty to waive the immunity of an official when he considers that such immunity prevents the normal course of justice and that it is possible to waive that immunity without prejudice to the interests of The Organization. In respect of the Director General, the Coordination Committee shall have the capacity to waive the immunities.

The Organization and the Swiss authorities shall cooperate at all times with a view to facilitating the proper administration of justice, ensuring compliance with police regulations and preventing any abuse of the privileges, immunities and facilities provided for in the Agreement.

1. The Federal Political Department shall provide to the Organization, for each official and members of his or her family living in his or her care, sharing with him and not carrying on a gainful occupation, a legitimising card With the photograph of the holder. This map, which is authenticated by the Federal Political Department and the Organization, serves to legitimizing the holder in respect of any federal, cantonal and communal authority.

2. The Organisation shall communicate regularly to the Federal Political Department the list of officials of the Organization and members of their families, indicating for each of them the date of birth, nationality, residence in Switzerland and The category or function class to which they belong.

The Organization shall make appropriate arrangements for the satisfactory resolution of:

(a)

Disputes arising from contracts to which the United Nations would be a party and other disputes involving a private law point;

(b)

Disputes involving an official of the Organization who, as a result of his official status, enjoys immunity, if that immunity has not been waived in accordance with the provisions of Art. 20.

Switzerland shall not, by virtue of the activities of the Organization in its territory, incur any international responsibility for the acts and omissions of the Organization or for those of its agents acting or abstaining in the course of their Functions.

Nothing in this Agreement shall affect the right of the Federal Council to take all necessary precautions in the interest of the security of Switzerland.

2. In the event that it considers it necessary to apply the first paragraph of this Article, the Federal Council shall, as rapidly as the circumstances permit, permit the Federal Council in connection with the Organisation with a view to the adoption of a common agreement on measures Necessary to protect the interests of the Organization.

3. The Organization shall cooperate with the Swiss authorities in order to avoid prejudice to the security of Switzerland as a result of its activity.

The Federal Political Department is the Swiss authority responsible for the implementation of this Agreement.

(1) Any difference of opinion concerning the application or interpretation of this Agreement, which could not be settled by direct talks between the parties, may be submitted by either party to the assessment of a arbitral tribunal Composed of three members.

2. The Federal Council and the Organization shall each appoint a member of the tribunal.

3. The members so appointed shall select their chairperson.

4. In the event of disagreement between the members concerning the person of the President, the President shall be appointed by the President of the International Court of Justice at the request of the members of the Tribunal.

5. The court shall determine its own procedure.

The entry into force of this Agreement shall be fixed with retroactive effect to 26 April 1970.

1. This Agreement may be revised at the request of either Party.

2. In this event, both parties shall consult on any amendments to the provisions of this Agreement.

3. In the event that the negotiations fail to reach an agreement within one year, the agreement may be terminated by either party, subject to two years' notice.

Done and signed in Bern on 9 December 1970, in duplicate.