Exclusion zone

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The French part of Geneva Airport is a customs exclusion area for Switzerland and a connection area of ​​the European Customs Union

In the narrower sense, a customs exclusion area is basically an area that belongs to the sovereign territory of State A but is subject to the customs sovereignty of State B. It is purely conceptual to note that the same area is a customs enclave from the perspective of state A, from the perspective of state B, a customs union area . In a broader sense, a customs exclusion area of ​​state A can also exist if the area in question is not subject to the customs connection of state B, but rather represents an independent customs area. This can be, for example, a duty-free zone, a zone with greatly reduced customs and tax rates or a free port .

Reasons for exclusion zones

There are two main reasons for creating exclusion zones. In the first case, these are exclaves that are completely surrounded by the territory of another state and therefore belong to its customs territory. In the second case, there are geographical reasons, such as missing or only temporarily passable pass roads , which make an area difficult to access from one's own country.

Duty Free Districts

Duty-free areas are customs airports. You belong to the customs area, but are treated as foreign customs . Bonded warehouse are in Switzerland, for example, since 1 May 2007 stops inches abroad, but part of the customs territory. The previous status regularly resulted in problems in the application of the remaining, non-customs federal law.

Examples

  • Büsingen am Hochrhein in the district of Konstanz is a German customs exclusion area and at the same time a Swiss customs connection area: The German community Büsingen am Hochrhein in the district of Konstanz near Schaffhausen is an enclave in Switzerland, i. i.e., it is completely enclosed by Swiss territory. From 1947 to October 3, 1967, the municipality was de facto Swiss customs territory. A state treaty has existed between the two countries since October 4, 1967, regulating a number of details resulting from this situation. Cars from Büsingen, for example, are treated like Swiss vehicles, but must be cleared through customs if they are imported from Germany. Otherwise, Büsingen is largely integrated into the economic area of ​​Switzerland.
  • Samnaun , Swiss customs exclusion zone, but no customs connection to Austria → duty-free zone .
  • Livigno , Italian customs exclusion zone, but no customs connection to Switzerland → duty-free zone . The place is a customs exclusion zone of the European Union . There is no VAT in Livigno .
  • Helgoland is a German customs exclusion area. The archipelago of Helgoland and Düne has belonged to German territory since 1890 and is integrated into the Pinneberg district ( Schleswig-Holstein ) as an unofficial municipality of Helgoland . Special regulations apply to both islands: the municipality is part of the German economic area, but is neither part of the customs territory of the European Union, nor are German consumption taxes levied.
  • Ceuta and Melilla are Spanish cities on the North African coast and the Strait of Gibraltar and are excluded from the customs territory of the EU according to the Union Customs Code .
  • The northern (Turkish) part of Cyprus, where the Government of Cyprus does not exercise any real control, is a customs exclusion zone.

Historical

Jestetter Zipfel (1840-1935)

The Jestetter Zipfel with the municipalities of Lottstetten , Jestetten and Dettighofen has a special location in Germany: it is surrounded over a length of 55 km by the border with Switzerland and can only be reached by vehicle from the rest of Germany on German territory via a state road ; Another direct road connection leads over Swiss territory through the Wangental . The most important traffic artery, however, is the federal road 27 , which in connection with the Swiss main road 4 leads from Schaffhausen via the German Jestetten towards Zurich. The area is not an exclave .

The Jestetter Zipfel emerged in the middle of the 17th century when the Counts of Sulz sold parts of the Landgraviate of Klettgau , namely the Upper Klettgau to the north of Schaffhausen and the Rafzerfeld to the south of Zurich. In 1806 the remaining Landgraviate became Baden . In terms of foreign trade, Baden initially practiced free trade . That changed in 1835 when it joined the German Customs Union. The resulting customs border brought the residents of the Jestetter Zipfels considerable economic difficulties; the long border line could hardly be monitored.

This was remedied by declaring the Jestetter Zipfel with the municipalities of Jestetten , Lottstetten and Dettighofen to be an exclusion zone by decree of July 30, 1840 , which shortened the border to be monitored from 55 to 6 kilometers. As long as this regulation existed, it brought the inhabitants of the area a modest prosperity, as they could offer their products duty-free in Baden and in the German Empire as well as in Switzerland. The occasional smuggling was not only caused by times of need. Petrol was cheaper than in Switzerland and than in the rest of Germany; Numerous petrol stations opened on the main roads that sold duty-free fuel.

After the First World War, the Baden government flatly rejected the Jestetter Zipfel's attempt to join forces. However, she was ready to swap the two Baden exclaves Verenahof and Büsingen on the Upper Rhine for other areas with Switzerland. Its status as a customs exclusion zone was lifted in 1935.

Austria (until 1995)

Before Austria joined the European Customs Union in 1995, the Austrian municipalities of Jungholz and Mittelberg (Kleinwalsertal) were also Austrian customs exclusion areas and German customs connection areas. A specialty still concerns the Austrian communities Mittelberg in Kleinwalsertal and Jungholz, in which consumption taxes are levied by the German customs administration on the basis of bilateral agreements with Austria according to German consumption tax laws.

Campione d'Italia (until 2019)

The Italian municipality of Campione d'Italia , and the belonging to Italy of Lake Lugano between Ponte Tresa and Porto Ceresio was Italian until the end of 2019 inch of circuit area and de facto Swiss customs of circuit area. Campione d'Italia, Como Province, on the east bank of Lake Lugano , is an enclave in Switzerland. It is strongly integrated in Switzerland economically. However, there was no state treaty here. The customs status was only de facto . Campione d'Italia has been part of the customs territory of the European Union since January 1st, 2020 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b German tax area . Zoll.de. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
  2. ↑ Art. 4, para. 1, indent 8 of Regulation (EU) No. 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of October 9, 2013 establishing the Union Customs Code (new version) . In: Official Journal of the European Union . L 269, October 9, 2013, p. 11.
  3. ^ History of Jestetten ( Memento of September 28, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) (with map of the customs exclusion zone)
  4. ↑ EUR-Lex: inclusion of the Italian municipality of Campione d'Italia and the part of Lake Lugano belonging to the Italian territory into the customs territory of the Union
  5. ↑ Gerhard Lob: Surrounded by Switzerland: An Italian exclave in Ticino becomes the customs territory of the EU. Luzerner Zeitung , January 3, 2010, accessed on January 19, 2020.