Cultural Property Transfer Act (CPTA)
Amended by No I of the FA of 25 Sept. 2020, in force since 1 Feb. 2021 (AS 2021 50; BBl 2020 3131).
English is not an official language of the Swiss Confederation. This translation is provided for information purposes only and has no legal force.
Art. 4a Customs declaration
Any person who imports, carries in transit or exports cultural property as defined in Article 2 paragraph 1 must declare it to customs.
Art. 4a — Inserted by No I of the FA of 25 Sept. 2020, in force since 1 Feb. 2021 (AS 2021 50; BBl 2020 3131).
Art. 5 Export licence for cultural property in the Federal Register
1 Any person who wishes to export from Switzerland cultural property that is registered in the Federal Register shall require a licence from the Specialised Body. 2 The licence shall be granted if: a. the cultural property is being exported temporarily; and b. the cultural property is being exported for the purpose of the research, conservation, exhibition or for similar reasons.
Art. 6 Swiss right of repatriation
1 If cultural property registered in the Federal Register has been exported unlawfully from Switzerland, the Federal Council shall exercise its right of repatriation against other contracting states. Any compensation and costs shall be paid by the Confederation. 2 If cultural property registered in a cantonal register is exported unlawfully from Switzerland, the Federal Council shall at the request of the canton concerned exercise its right of repatriation against other contracting states. Any compensation and costs shall be paid by the requesting canton.
Art. 7 Agreements
1 To safeguard cultural and foreign policy interests and to preserve our cultural heritage the Federal Council may enter into international treaties with contracting states on the import and repatriation of cultural property (agreements). 2 The following conditions must be met: a. the subject matter of the agreement must be cultural property of essential importance to the cultural heritage of the contracting State concerned; b. the cultural property must be subject to provisions on export in the contracting State concerned that aim to protect cultural heritage; and c. the contracting State must grant reciprocal rights.
Art. 8 Temporary measures
1 In order to protect from damage the cultural heritage of a State that is endangered due to exceptional events, the Federal Council may: a. permit, place conditions on, restrict or prohibit the import, transit and export of cultural property; b. participate in joint international operations as defined in Article 9 of the 1970 UNESCO Convention. 2 The measures must be temporary.
Art. 9 Repatriation actions based on agreements
1 Any person in possession of cultural property that has been unlawfully imported into Switzerland may be sued for repatriation by the State from which the cultural property has been unlawfully exported. The plaintiff State must in particular prove that the cultural property is of essential importance to its cultural heritage and was unlawfully imported. 2 The court may postpone repatriation until the cultural property is no longer at risk on its repatriation. 3 The costs of the measures required to secure, preserve and repatriate the cultural property shall be borne by the plaintiff State. 4 The State’s right of repatriation is subject to a statute of limitations of one year from the date on which its authorities became aware of where and with whom the cultural property is located, but 30 years at the latest after the cultural property was unlawfully exported. 5 Any person who has acquired the cultural property in good faith and must return it is entitled at the time of repatriation t