Logo jurisLogo Bundesministerium der Justiz

Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany

Full text in format:   HTML  PDF   text in German

Übersetzung durch: Professor Christian Tomuschat und Professor David P. Currie

Übersetzung überarbeitet durch: Professor Christian Tomuschat und Professor Donald P. Kommers in Kooperation mit dem Sprachendienst des Deutschen Bundestages

Translated by: Professor Christian Tomuschat and Professor David P. Currie

Translation revised by: Professor Christian Tomuschat and Professor Donald P. Kommers in cooperation with the Language Service of the German Bundestag

© 2012 juris GmbH, Saarbrücken

                     
Preamble
I. Basic Rights
Article 1[Human dignity – Human rights – Legally binding force of basic rights]
Article 2 [Personal freedoms]
Article 3[Equality before the law]
Article 4[Freedom of faith and conscience]
Article 5[Freedom of expression, arts and sciences]
Article 6[Marriage – Family – Children]
Article 7[School system]
Article 8[Freedom of assembly]
Article 9[Freedom of association]
Article 10[Privacy of correspondence, posts and telecommunications]
Article 11[Freedom of movement]
Article 12[Occupational freedom]
Article 12a[Compulsory military and alternative civilian service]
Article 13[Inviolability of the home]
Article 14[Property – Inheritance – Expropriation]
Article 15[Socialisation]
Article 16[Citizenship – Extradition]
Article 16a[Right of asylum]
Article 17[Right of petition]
Article 17a[Restriction of basic rights in specific instances]
Article 18[Forfeiture of basic rights]
Article 19[Restriction of basic rights – Legal remedies]
II. The Federation and the Länder
Article 20[Constitutional principles – Right of resistance]
Article 20a[Protection of the natural foundations of life and animals]
Article 21[Political parties]
Article 22[Federal capital – Federal flag]
Article 23[European Union – Protection of basic rights – Principle of subsidiarity]
Article 24[Transfer of sovereign powers – System of collective security]
Article 25[Primacy of international law]
Article 26[Securing international peace]
Article 27[Merchant fleet]
Article 28[Land constitutions – Autonomy of municipalities]
Article 29[New delimitation of the federal territory]
Article 30[Sovereign powers of the Länder]
Article 31[Supremacy of federal law]
Article 32[Foreign relations]
Article 33[Equal citizenship – Public service]
Article 34[Liability for violation of official duty]
Article 35[Legal and administrative assistance and assistance during disasters]
Article 36[Personnel of federal authorities]
Article 37[Federal execution]
III. The Bundestag
Article 38[Elections]
Article 39[Electoral term – Convening]
Article 40[Presidency – Rules of procedure]
Article 41[Scrutiny of elections]
Article 42[Public sittings – Majority decisions]
Article 43[Right to require presence, right of access and right to be heard]
Article 44[Committees of inquiry]
Article 45[Committee on the European Union]
Article 45a[Committees on Foreign Affairs and Defence]
Article 45b[Parliamentary Commissioner for the Armed Forces]
Article 45c[Petitions Committee]
Article 45d[Parliamentary Control Panel]
Article 46[Immunities of Members]
Article 47[Right of refusal to give evidence]
Article 48[Candidature – Protection of membership – Remuneration]
Article 49 [repealed]
IV. The Bundesrat
Article 50[Functions]
Article 51[Composition – Weighted voting]
Article 52[President – Decisions – Rules of procedure]
Article 53[Attendance of members of the Federal Government]
IVa. The Joint Committee
Article 53a[Composition – Rules of procedure]
V. The Federal President
Article 54[Election – Term of office]
Article 55[Incompatibilities]
Article 56[Oath of office]
Article 57[Substitution]
Article 58[Countersignature]
Article 59[Representation of the Federation for the purposes of international law]
Article 59a[repealed]
Article 60[Appointment of civil servants – Pardon – Immunity]
Article 61[Impeachment before the Federal Constitutional Court]
VI. The Federal Government
Article 62[Composition]
Article 63[Election of the Federal Chancellor]
Article 64[Appointment and dismissal of Federal Ministers – Oath of office]
Article 65[Power to determine policy guidelines – Department and collegiate responsibility]
Article 65a[Command of the Armed Forces]
Article 66[Incompatibilities]
Article 67[Vote of no confidence]
Article 68[Vote of confidence]
Article 69[Deputy Federal Chancellor – Term of office]
VII. Federal Legislation and Legislative Procedures
Article 70[Division of powers between the Federation and the Länder]
Article 71[Exclusive legislative power of the Federation]
Article 72[Concurrent legislative powers]
Article 73
[Matters under exclusive legislative power of the Federation]
Article 74[Matters under concurrent legislative powers]
Article 74a[repealed]
Article 75[repealed]
Article 76[Bills]
Article 77[Legislative procedure – Mediation Committee]
Article 78[Passage of federal laws]
Article 79[Amendment of the Basic Law]
Article 80[Issuance of statutory instruments]
Article 80a[State of tension]
Article 81[Legislative emergency]
Article 82[Certification – Promulgation – Entry into force]
VIII. The Execution of Federal Laws and the Federal Administration
Article 83[Execution by the Länder]
Article 84[Länder administration – Federal oversight]
Article 85[Execution by the Länder on federal commission]
Article 86[Federal administration]
Article 87[Matters]
Article 87a[Armed Forces]
Article 87b[Federal Defence Administration]
Article 87c[Production and utilisation of nuclear energy]
Article 87d[Air transport administration]
Article 87e[Rail transport administration]
Article 87f[Posts and telecommunications]
Article 88[The Federal Bank – The European Central Bank]
Article 89[Federal waterways – Administration of waterways]
Article 90[Federal highways]
Article 91[Internal emergency]
VIIIa. Joint Tasks
Article 91a[Joint tasks – Responsibility for expenditure]
Article 91b[Education programmes and promotion of research]
Article 91c [Information technology systems]
Article 91d[Comparison of performance]
Article 91e[Cooperation in respect of basic support for persons seeking employment]
IX. The Judiciary
Article 92[Court organisation]
Article 93[Jurisdiction of the Federal Constitutional Court]
Article 94[Composition of the Federal Constitutional Court]
Article 95[Supreme federal courts]
Article 96[Other federal courts]
Article 97[Judicial independence]
Article 98[Legal status of judges – Impeachment]
Article 99[Constitutional disputes within a Land]
Article 100[Concrete judicial review]
Article 101[Ban on extraordinary courts]
Article 102[Abolition of capital punishment]
Article 103[Fair trial]
Article 104[Deprivation of liberty]
X. Finance
Article 104a[Apportionment of expenditures – Financial system – Liability]
Article 104b[Financial assistance for investments]
Article 105[Distribution of powers regarding tax laws]
Article 106[Apportionment of tax revenue and yield of fiscal monopolies]
Article 106a[Federal grants for local mass transit]
Article 106b[Länder share of motor vehicle tax]
Article 107[Distribution of tax revenue – Financial equalisation among the Länder – Supplementary grants]
Article 108[Financial administration of the Federation and the Länder – Financial courts]
Article 109[Budget management in the Federation and the Länder]
Article 109a [Budgetary emergencies]
Article 110[Federal budget]
Article 111[Interim budget management]
Article 112[Extrabudgetary expenditures]
Article 113[Increase of expenditures]
Article 114[Submission and auditing of accounts]
Article 115[Limits of borrowing]
Xa. State of Defence
Article 115a[Declaration of state of defence]
Article 115b[Power of command of the Federal Chancellor]
Article 115c[Extension of the legislative powers of the Federation]
Article 115d
[Urgent bills]
Article 115e[Joint Committee]
Article 115f[Use of Federal Border Police – Extended powers of instruction]
Article 115g[Federal Constitutional Court]
Article 115h[Expiry of electoral terms and terms of office]
Article 115i[Powers of the Land governments]
Article 115k[Rank and duration of emergency provisions]
Article 115l[Repeal of emergency measures – Conclusion of peace]
XI. Transitional and Concluding Provisions
Article 116[Definition of “German” – Restoration of citizenship]
Article 117[Suspended entry into force of two basic rights]
Article 118[New delimitation of Baden and Württemberg]
Article 118a[New delimitation of Berlin and Brandenburg]
Article 119[Refugees and expellees]
Article 120[Occupation costs – Burdens resulting from the war]
Article 120a[Equalisation of burdens]
Article 121[Definition of “majority of the members”]
Article 122[Date of transmission of legislative powers]
Article 123[Continued applicability of pre-existing law]
Article 124[Continued applicability of law within the scope of exclusive legislative power]
Article 125[Continued applicability of law within the scope of concurrent legislative power]
Article 125a[Continued applicability of federal law – Replacement by Land law]
Article 125b[Continued applicability of framework laws – Deviation power of the Länder]
Article 125c[Continued applicability of law within the scope of joint tasks]
Article 126[Determination about continued applicability of law as federal law]
Article 127[Extension of law to the French zone and to Berlin]
Article 128[Continued authority to issue instructions]
Article 129[Continued authority to issue legal acts]
Article 130[Transfer of existing administrative institutions]
Article 131[Persons formerly in the public service]
Article 132[Retirement of civil servants]
Article 133[Succession to the Administration of the Combined Economic Area]
Article 134[Succession to Reich assets]
Article 135[Assets in case of territorial changes between the Länder]
Article 135a[Old debts]
Article 136[First convening of the Bundesrat]
Article 137[Right of state employees to stand for election]
Article 138[South German notaries]
Article 139[Continued applicability of denazification provisions]
Article 140[Law of religious denominations]
Article 141[“Bremen Clause”]
Article 142[Reservation in favour of basic rights in Land constitutions]
Article 142a [repealed]
Article 143[Duration of deviations from the Basic Law]
Article 143a[Exclusive legislative power concerning federal railways]
Article 143b[Privatisation of the Deutsche Bundespost]
Article 143c[Compensation for the cessation of joint tasks]
Article 143d[Transitional provisions relating to consolidation assistance]
Article 144[Ratification of the Basic Law – Berlin]
Article 145[Entry into force of the Basic Law]
Article 146[Duration of the Basic Law]
[Weimar Constitution]
Religion and Religious Societies
Article 136
Article 137
Article 138
Article 139
Article 141