For the purposes of this Protocol:
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a) "Member State" means a State party to the Convention;
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b) "archives" means all records, including correspondence, documents, manuscripts, photographs,
films, optical and magnetic recordings, data recordings and computer programmes, belonging
to or held by EUMETSAT;
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c) "official activities" of EUMETSAT means all activities carried out by EUMETSAT in
pursuance of its objectives as defined in Article 2 of the Convention and includes its administrative activities;
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d) "property" means anything that may be subject to a right of ownership as well as contractual
rights;
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e) "representatives" of Member States means representatives and their advisers;
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f) "staff members" means the Director-General and all persons employed by EUMETSAT, holding
permanent appointments and who are subject to its Staff Rules;
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g) "expert" means a person other than a staff member appointed to carry out a specific
task on behalf of EUMETSAT and at its expense.
Article 2. Legal Personality
EUMETSAT shall have legal personality in accordance with Article 1 of the Convention. It shall in particular have the capacity to contract, to acquire and dispose of
movable and immovable property, and to be a party to legal proceedings.
Article 3. Inviolability of Archives
The archives of EUMETSAT shall be inviolable.
Article 4. Immunity from jurisdiction and execution
Article 5. Fiscal and Custom Provisions
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(2) When purchases or services of substantial value and necessary for the exercise of
the official activities of EUMETSAT are made or used by EUMETSAT and when the price
of such purchases and services includes taxes or duties, the Member State that has
levied the taxes or duties shall take appropriate measures to grant exemption from
such taxes or duties or to provide for their reimbursement, if they are identifiable.
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(5) Goods acquired or imported and exempted under this Article shall not be sold, hired
out, lent or given away against payment or free of charge, except in accordance with
conditions laid down by the Member States which have granted exemptions or reimbursements.
Article 6. Funds, Currency and Securities
EUMETSAT may receive and hold any kind of funds, currency, cash and securities. It
may dispose of them freely for any of its official activities and hold accounts in
any currency to the extent required to meet its obligations.
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(2) With regard to the transmission of data within the scope of its official activities,
EUMETSAT shall enjoy in the territory of each Member State treatment as favourable
as that accorded by that State to its national meteorological service, taking into
account the international obligations of that State in respect of telecommunications.
The circulation of publications and other information material sent by or to EUMETSAT
shall not be restricted in any way.
Article 9. Representatives
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(1) Representatives of Member States shall, while exercising their official functions
and in the course of their journeys to and from the place of meeting, enjoy the following
privileges and immunities:
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a) immunity from arrest and detention, and from seizure of their personal luggage, except
in the case of a grave crime or when found committing, attempting to commit or just
having committed an offence;
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b) immunity from jurisdiction, even after the termination of their mission, in respect
of acts, including words spoken and written, done by them in the exercise of their
functions; this immunity shall not apply, however, in the case of a traffic offence
committed by a representative of a Member State, nor in the case of damage caused
by a vehicle or other means of transport belonging to or driven by him;
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c) inviolability for all their official papers and documents;
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d) exemption from all measures restricting immigration and from aliens' registration
formalities;
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e) the same treatment in the matter of currency and exchange regulations as is accorded
to the representatives of foreign governments on temporary official missions;
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f) the same treatment in the matter of customs as regards their personal luggage as is
accorded to the representatives of foreign governments on temporary official missions.
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(2) Privileges and immunities are accorded to representatives of Member States not for
their personal advantage but in order to ensure complete independence in the exercise
of their functions in connection with EUMETSAT. Consequently, a Member State has the
duty to waive the immunity of a representative wherever retaining it would impede
the course of justice and it can be waived without prejudicing the purposes for which
it was accorded.
Article 10. Staff Members
The staff members of EUMETSAT shall enjoy the following privileges and immunities:
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a) immunity from jurisdiction, even after they have left the service of EUMETSAT, in
respect of acts, including words written and spoken, done by them in the exercise
of their function; this immunity shall not apply, however, in the case of a traffic
offence committed by a staff member, nor in the case of damage caused by a vehicle
or other means of transport belonging to or driven by him;
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b) exemption from all obligations in respect of national service, including military
service;
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c) inviolability for all their official papers and documents;
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d) together with members of their families forming part of their households, exemption
from all measures restricting immigration and from aliens' registration formalities;
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e) together with members of their families forming part of their households, the same
facilities as to repatriation, in time of international crisis, as are normally accorded
to staff members of international organisations;
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f) the same treatment in respect of currency and exchange regulations as is normally
accorded to staff members of international organisations;
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g) exemption from all national income tax on their salaries and emoluments paid to them
by EUMETSAT, excluding pensions and other similar benefits paid by EUMETSAT, from
the date upon which staff members have begun to be liable for a tax on their salaries
by EUMETSAT for the latter's benefit. The Member States reserve the right to take
those salaries and emoluments into account when assessing the amount of tax to be
applied to income from other sources;
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h) the right to import free of custom duties and other import charges their furniture
and personal effects, including a motor vehicle, at the time of taking up their post
in the territory of a Member State, and the right to export them free of duty upon
termination of their functions, subject to the conditions laid down by the laws and
regulations of the Member State concerned.
Goods imported and exempted under this paragraph shall not be sold, hired out, lent
or given away against payment or free of charge, except in accordance with the conditions
laid down by the Member States which have granted the exemptions.
Article 11. Director-General
In addition to the privileges and immunities provided for staff members under Article
10, the Director-General shall enjoy:
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a) immunity from arrest and detention, except when found committing, attempting to commit
or just having committed an offence;
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b) immunity from civil and administrative jurisdiction and execution enjoyed by diplomatic
agents, except in the case of damage caused by a vehicle or other means of transport
belonging to or driven by him;
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c) full immunity from criminal jurisdiction, except in the case of a traffic offence
caused by a vehicle or other means of transport belonging to, or driven by him, subject
to sub-paragraph a) above;
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d) the same customs facilities as regards his personal luggage as are accorded to diplomatic
agents.
Article 12. Social Security
Provided that the staff members are covered by a social security scheme of EUMETSAT
providing adequate benefits, EUMETSAT, and its staff members shall be exempt form
all compulsory contributions to national social security schemes, subject to agreements
to be concluded with Member States concerned in accordance with Article 19 or equivalent
measures taken by the Member States or other relevant provisions in force in the Member
States.
Experts other than the staff members shall enjoy the following privileges and immunities
while performing their duties for EUMETSAT or carrying out missions on its behalf:
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a) immunity from jurisdiction, even after the termination of their mission, in respect
of acts, including words spoken and written, done by them in the exercise of their
functions; this immunity shall not apply, however, in the case of a traffic offence
committed by an expert, nor in the case of damage caused by a vehicle or other means
of transport belonging to or driven by him;
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b) inviolability for all their official papers and documents;
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c) exemption from all measures restricting immigration and from aliens' registration
formalities;
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d) the same treatment in the matter of currency and exchange regulations as is accorded
to the representatives of foreign governments on temporary official missions.
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(1) The privileges and immunities provided for in this Protocol are not granted to staff
members and experts for their personal advantage. They are provided solely to ensure,
in all circumstances, the unimpeded functioning of EUMETSAT and the complete independence
of the persons to whom they are accorded.
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(2) The Director-General has the duty to waive the immunity of a staff member or an expert
in all cases wherever retaining it would impede the course of justice and it can be
waived without prejudicing the interests of EUMETSAT. In the case of the Director-General,
the Council is competent to waive such immunity.
Article 15. Notification of staff members and experts
The Director-General of EUMETSAT shall at least once every year notify the Member
States of the names and nationalities of the staff members and experts.
Article 16. Entry, Stay and Departure
Member States shall take all appropriate measures to facilitate the entry into, stay
in, or departure from their territories of representatives of Member States, staff
members and experts.
The provisions of this Protocol shall not prejudice the right of each Member State
to take all precautionary measures necessary in the interests of its security.
Article 18. Cooperation with the Member States
EUMETSAT shall co-operate at all times with the competent authorities of Member States
in order to facilitate the proper administration of justice, to ensure the observance
of the laws and regulations, and to prevent any abuse of the privileges, immunities
and facilities provided for in this Protocol.
Article 19. Complementary Agreements
EUMETSAT may conclude with one or more Member States complementary agreements to give
effect to the provisions of the Protocol as regards such State or States, and other
arrangements to ensure the efficient functioning of EUMETSAT.
Article 20. Privileges and Immunities for Nationals and Permanent Residents
No Member State shall be obliged to accord the privileges and immunities referred
to in Articles 9, 10 b), d), e), f) and h), 11 and 13 c) and d) to its own nationals
or permanent residents.
Article 21. Arbitration Clause in Written Contracts
When concluding written contracts, other than those concluded in accordance with the
staff regulations, EUMETSAT shall provide for arbitration. The arbitration clause
or the special arbitration agreement concluded to this end shall specify the law and
procedure applicable, the composition of the tribunal, the procedure for the appointment
of the arbitrators and the seat of the tribunal. The execution of the arbitration
award shall be governed by the rules in force in the State on whose territory the
award is to be executed.
Article 22. Settlement of disputes concerning damage, non-contractual responsibility
or staff Members and Experts
Any Member State may submit to arbitration in accordance with the procedure provided
for in Article 15 of the Convention any dispute.
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a) arising out of damage caused by EUMETSAT;
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b) involving any other non-contractual responsibility of EUMETSAT;
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c) involving a staff member or an expert and in which the person concerned can claim
immunity from jurisdiction, if this immunity is not waived.
Article 23. Settlement of disputes concerning the interpretation or application of
this Protocol
Any dispute between EUMETSAT and a Member State or between two or more Member States
concerning the interpretation or application of this Protocol which is not settled
by negotiations or through the Council shall, at the request of any party to the dispute,
be submitted to arbitration in accordance with the procedure provided for in Article 15 of the Convention.
Article 24. Entry into force, duration and termination
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(2) The Swiss Government shall notify all States that have signed or acceded to the Convention and the Director-General of EUMETSAT of the signatures, of the deposit of any instrument
of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, the entry into force of this Protocol,
any denunciation of this Protocol, and of its expiry. Upon the entry into force of
this Protocol, the depositary shall register it with the Secretary General of the
United Nations in accordance with Article 102 of the Charter of the United Nations.
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(3) This Protocol shall enter into force thirty days after its signature by six States
without their signatures being subject to ratification, acceptance or approval, or
thirty days after the date of deposit of their instruments of ratification, acceptance,
approval or accession.
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(4) Once this Protocol has entered into force, it shall take effect vis-à-vis the States
that have signed it without their signatures being subject to ratification, acceptance
or approval, or which have deposited their instruments of ratification, acceptance,
approval or accession, thirty days after the date of signature or of deposit of the
relevant instrument.