Amendment of the General Settlement Fund Law: Deadline Extension for Applications for In Rem Restitution

The deadline for applications for in rem restitution has been extended to 31 December 2007! The according amendment (Federal Law Gazette No. 20/2007) came into effect on 25 April 2007. Until the end of 2007, real estate as well as movable property of Jewish communal organizations, which have been seized by the National Socialist regime between 1938 and 1945 and were publicly owned on 17 January 2001, can be claimed by the former owners or by their legal successors.

Apart from the Republic of Austria, the City of Vienna, the provinces of Burgenland, Carinthia, Lower Austria, Salzburg, Styria and Vorarlberg, certain municipalities as well have joined the procedure of the Arbitration Panel. The provinces of Carinthia and Upper Austria have passed their own restitution laws which equally set aside the Arbitration Panel for the examination of applications for in rem restitution.

The Jurisdiction of the Arbitration Panel over Austrian Municipalities

Until 31 December 2006, the municipalities Bad Ischl, Eisenstadt, Mattersburg, Oberwart, Purkersdorf, Rechnitz, Stockerau, Vöcklabruck and Wiener Neudorf decided to set aside the Arbitration Panel for the examination of applications for in rem restitution of publicly owned property pursuant with Sec. 38 of the General Settlement Fund Law.

Applications for in rem restitution can be delivered by mail, by fax or personally to the General Settlement Fund under the Fund's official address. Click here for the according contact addresses.

Double Compensation

Besides this, the last amendment of the General Settlement Fund Law ensures that a financial compensation paid by the General Settlement Fund for publicly owned objects of art or real estate does not exclude the subsequent restitution of the concerned assets. However, the prerequisite for the restitution is that the parties entitled to restitution reimburse the compensation amounts which they have already received for the same objects.

Provisions for Data Processing

Equally, together with the amendment of the General Settlement Fund Law, the utilization of personal data, which the General Settlement Fund has obtained during its activities, has been provided for in an own regulation.