War Material Act (WMA)
English is not an official language of the Swiss Confederation. This translation is provided for information purposes only and has no legal force.
Art. 26 Controls
The Federal Council shall issue regulations on the control of the manufacture, trade, brokerage, import, export and transit of war materiel as well as the transfer of intellectual property, including know-how, or the granting of rights thereto, to the extent that these relate to war materiel.
Art. 27 Obligation to provide information
The holder of a licence under this Act or the proprietor and the staff of the corresponding company are obliged to provide the control authorities with all the information and documents required for appropriate controls to be carried out.
Art. 28 Powers of the control authorities
1 The control authorities have the right to enter and inspect the business premises of persons obliged to provide information during normal working hours without prior notice and to examine the relevant documents. They shall confiscate incriminating materiel. In the event of suspicion of an offence, more rigorous provisions of procedural law are reserved. 2 If necessary, they may in the course of their controls call in cantonal and communal police officers, the investigating authorities of the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security, and the Federal Intelligence Service. 3 They may process personal data in accordance with the objectives of this Act. Particularly sensitive personal data may be processed only where it relates to administrative or criminal proceedings and sanctions. Additional particularly sensitive personal data may be processed only if this is indispensable for handling the individual case. 4 They are obliged to preserve professional secrecy and to take all the p
Para. 2 — Amended by No I 15 of the O of 12 June 2020 on the Amendment of Legislation as a consequence of the Change in the Name of the Federal Customs Administration as part of its further Development, in force since 1 Jan. 2022 (AS 2020 2743).
Art. 29 Jurisdiction and procedure
1 The Federal Council shall designate the responsible agencies and regulate the procedural details. Border controls are the responsibility of the customs authorities. 2 The Federal Council shall decide on applications that are of substantial importance to foreign or security policy. In addition, the provisions of the Federal Act on Administrative Procedure of 20 December 1968 govern the procedure. 3 The procedure for appeals against orders or rulings made in terms of this Act is governed by the general provisions on federal administrative procedure.
Para. 2 — SR 172.021
Art. 30 Central office
1 The Federal Council shall designate a Central Office for combating illegal activities in connection with war materiel. 2 The Central Office shall participate in enforcement and in the prevention of offences and shall report violations of the provisions of this Act to the competent prosecution authorities. Insofar as and for as long as fulfilment of its duties requires, it is entitled to process personal data, including personal data that allows the risk of a person committing offences under this act to be assessed, irrespective of whether the personal data is sensitive.
Para. 2 — Amended by No I 6 of the Ordinance of 12 Dec. 2008 on the Amendment of Statutory Provisions due to the Transfer of the Intelligence Section of the Service for Analysis and Prevention to the DDPS, in force since 1 Jan. 2009 (AS 2008 6261). Para. 2 — Second sentence amended by Annex 1 No II 43 of the Data Protection Act of 25 Sept. 2020, in force since 1 Sept. 2023 (AS 2022 491; BBl 2017 6941).
Art. 31 Fees
The licences provided for by this Act Fees are subject to fees. The Federal Council stipulates the rates.
Art. 32 Reporting to Parliament
The Federal Council shall report to the Control Committees of the Federal Parliament on the details relating to the export of war materiel.