Apply for export license for cultural property

You need a license to export cultural property from Germany if the cultural property exceeds certain age or value limits. Cultural assets are, for example, works of art, archaeological objects, archival materials, manuscripts or antiques such as furniture, musical instruments or jewelry. You can find out about the age and value limits, for example, on the internet portal of the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media on the protection of cultural property.

If the permit requirement is dependent on a financial value of the cultural asset, this value is

• the price paid within the last 3 years for a purchase or sale, or
• in other cases, a justified domestic appraised value at the time of application.

You can apply for the permit at the competent authority. A distinction is made between permanent and temporary export. The export is temporary if it is for a period limited from the beginning to a maximum of 5 years.

You apply for a permit to export cultural property in writing to the competent authority of the federal state in which the cultural property is located at the time of application. If you are a legal entity, your head office in the federal territory is decisive for the local jurisdiction.

Note: You can also use a new online procedure in pilot operation to apply for export licenses for cultural property. The online procedure includes an optional pre-check to determine, based on a few questions, whether an export license is needed in a specific case. In general, you no longer have to select the correct application yourself; it is determined automatically on the basis of the information provided. The pilot operation serves to further test and optimize the procedure. At the same time, the procedure is to be expanded by the end of 2022 so that digital issuing of the license is also possible.

Requirements

You will be granted a permit in accordance with Regulation (EC) No. 116/2009 or in accordance with Section 24 (1) No. 2 of the Cultural Property Protection Act if

• you are entitled to apply,
  
  • as the owner or an authorized third party
• you have submitted the required documents and
• at the time of the decision, there is no export ban in accordance with Section 21 (1), (2), (4) and (5) of the Cultural Property Protection Act.

You may be granted a license under Section 25 of the Cultural Property Protection Act if

• you are entitled to apply,
  
  • institutions that preserve cultural property and regularly export parts of their holdings temporarily for public exhibitions, restoration or research purposes are eligible to apply for a permit
• you have submitted the required documents
• at the time of the decision there is no export ban in accordance with § 21 numbers 1, 2, 4 and 5 of the Cultural Property Protection Act, and
• you, as the applicant, can guarantee that the cultural property intended for export will be re-imported into Germany in an undamaged condition and in due time.

You may be granted a permit under Section 26 of the Cultural Property Protection Act if

• you are entitled to apply,
  
  • as the owner or the rightful direct owner of the cultural property
• you have submitted the required documents
• at the time of the decision, there is no export ban in accordance with Section 21 (1), (2), (4) and (5) of the Cultural Property Protection Act, and
• you, as the person submitting the application, can guarantee that the cultural object intended for export will be re-imported into Germany in an undamaged condition and in due time.

What documents do I need?

• Written application for export of cultural goods or online application with authentication
• Provenance information on the cultural property
• If necessary, further proofs
  

  such as means of identification, loan agreements, proofs of value, etc.