| Amateur Radio Act (Gesetz über den Amateurfunk, AFuG) |
In the version published on 23 June 1997
Translation provided by the Federal Regulatory Authority for Telecommunications and Posts and reproduced with kind permission.
Table of Contents
§ 1 Scope
§ 2 Definitions
§ 3 Requirements for Participation in the
Amateur Service, Call Signs, Frequency Assignment
§ 4 Amateur Radio Examination, Recognition of
Amateur Radio Certificates issued by Foreign Administrations
§ 5 Rights and Obligations of the Radio
Amateur
§ 6 General Technical and Operational
Conditions
§ 7 Protection Requirements
§ 8 Fees and Expenses
§ 9 Administrative Fines Provisions
§ 10 Responsibilities
§ 11 Restriction and Prohibition of Operation
§ 12 Transitional Provision
§ 13 Entry into Force, Expiration
This Act lays down the requirements and conditions governing participation in the amateur service.
For the purposes of this Act
1. radio amateur shall be the holder of an amateur radio certificate or a harmonised amateur radio examination certificate based on Administrative Order No 9/1995 of 11 January 1995 issued by the Federal Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications (Official Gazette p 21) who is interested in the amateur service solely with a personal aim and without profit-oriented economic interest;
2. amateur service shall be a radio service carried out by radio amateurs for the purpose of intercommunication, experimental as well as technical and scientific investigations, further self-training, international understanding and the support of relief operations in cases of emergency and disaster; the amateur service shall include the use of space stations. The amateur service and the amateur-satellite service are not safety services;
3. an amateur station shall be a radio station consisting of one or more transmitters and receivers, including antenna systems and any auxiliary devices required for its operation, which can be operated on at least one of the frequencies designated in the frequency usage plan for the amateur service.
(1) Upon application the regulatory authority (§10) shall admit a natural person to participation in the amateur service and assign a personal call sign when such person has passed an examination for radio amateurs or has submitted an amateur radio examination certificate according to §2 subparagraph 1 of this Act.
(2) The regulatory authority shall assign further call signs to the radio amateur upon application. The Federal Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications shall be empowered to lay down, by ordinance having the force of law, the assignment procedure and details of use and sharing of call signs.
(3) An amateur station may be operated by the radio amateur only after admission to participation in the amateur service and assignment of
(4) While not affecting the admission to participation in the amateur service, the regulatory authority may change assigned call signs for significant reasons, in particular in the case of changes required by international specifications. Without prejudice to §49(2) of the Administrative Procedures Act it may revoke the admission to participation in the amateur service and withdraw the assigned call signs if the radio amateur persistently violates this Act or the ordinances having the force of law issued by virtue of this Act.
(5) The frequencies designated in the frequency usage plan (§46 of the Telecommunications Act of 25 July 1996 - Federal Law Gazette I p 1120) for the amateur service shall be deemed assigned to a radio amateur resident in Germany when he has been assigned one or more call signs.
(1) The Federal Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications shall be empowered to regulate, by ordinance having the force of law, the procedure for holding the amateur radio examination and the requirements concerning its contents, radio operations instruction, the classification of the various types of amateur radio certificates, and the recognition of foreign amateur radio examination certificates, provided they are equivalent to a German amateur radio certificate. Successful completion of the amateur radio examination shall be deemed proof of the knowledge, capabilities and skills required for independent and responsible participation in the amateur service.
(2) Any natural person resident in Germany shall, upon application, be admitted to the examination for radio amateurs. An amateur radio certificate (§2 subparagraph 1 of this Act) shall be issued upon successful completion of the amateur radio examination according to (1) above.
(3) Foreign radio amateurs meeting the conditions of Administrative Order No 8/1995 of 11 January 1995 issued by the Federal Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications (Official Gazette p 18) and not permanently resident in Germany may operate an amateur station in Germany for a maximum of three months.
(1) The radio amateur may use solely a call sign assigned to him by the regulatory authority.
(2) The call sign assigned by the regulatory authority shall authorise the radio amateur to operate, in derogation of the conformity assessment procedures laid down in §60 of the Telecommunications Act and the ordinances having the force of law issued by virtue of §61 of the Telecommunications Act, a commercially available or self-assembled amateur station as well as transmitting equipment converted into an amateur station.
(3) The radio amateur may use solely his amateur station for transmissions on the frequencies referred to in §3(5) of this Act.
(4) An amateur station shall not be operated
(5) The radio amateur may communicate solely with other amateur stations. The radio amateur shall not transmit on behalf of or to third parties messages which do not concern the amateur service. Sentence 2 above shall not apply in cases of emergency and disaster.
The Federal Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications shall be empowered to stipulate, by ordinance having the force of law in consideration of international agreements and other international recommendations concerning the amateur service, the general technical and operational conditions governing the implementation of the amateur service, in particular in respect of
- the planning of the frequencies for repeater stations as remote-controlled and automatic amateur stations, designated in the frequency usage plan for the amateur service, and the updating of this plan,
- the compilation and issue of a list of assigned German call signs and their holders, and
- the operation of amateur stations on board ships and in aircraft as well as
- procedures for eliminating electromagnetic incompatibilities between an amateur station and other apparatus within the meaning of the Electromagnetic Compatibility Act.
With the empowerment according to sentence 1 above, the Ordinance Concerning the Implementation of the Amateur Radio Law in the revised version published in Federal Law Gazette Part III, classification number 9022-1-1, last amended by the Ordinance of 15 April 1985 (Federal Law Gazette I p 637)* can also be repealed.
(1) In derogation of the other provisions of the Electromagnetic Compatibility Act as published on 30 August 1995 (Federal Law Gazette I p 1118) solely the protection requirements ensuring electromagnetic compatibility within the meaning of §4 of such Act shall be observed in the operation of an amateur station. The requirements laid down in an ordinance having the force of law according to §6 sentence 1 subparagraph 4 of this Act shall be complied with.
(2) The radio amateur may deviate from the immunity protection requirements within the meaning of §4(1) subparagraph 2 of the Electromagnetic Compatibility Act and may determine the level of immunity of his amateur station himself. Where the amateur station does not comply with the protection requirements within the meaning of §4(1) subparagraph 2 of such Act, the radio amateur shall accept electromagnetic disturbances caused by other apparatus to his amateur station if such apparatus meets the protection requirements according to §4(1) of the Electromagnetic Compatibility Act.
(3) §59(2) subparagraphs 1 and 5 of the Telecommunications Act shall apply to radio amateurs accordingly. Ordinances having the force of law issued according to §59(4) and §61 of the Telecommunications Act may be declared applicable to radio amateurs by ordinance having the force of law issued by the Federal Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications. Prior to commencing operation, the radio amateur shall submit the calculation and supplementary measurement protocols for the worst-case antenna configuration of his amateur station to the regulatory authority. The regulatory authority shall issue a certificate of safety for fixed radio transmitters upon application.
Costs (fees and expenses) shall accrue for official acts according to this Act. The Federal Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications shall be empowered to stipulate, in agreement with the Federal Ministry of Finance by ordinance having the force of law as provided for by the Administrative Expenses Act, the fees for
- the issue of amateur radio certificates after the amateur radio examination has been passed,
- the admission to participation in the amateur service and the assignment of call signs,
- the issue of harmonised amateur radio examination certificates,
- the withdrawal and rejection of applications for the official acts referred to in subparagraphs 1 to 3 above as well as the revocation of such official acts,
- the order to restrict operation or take an amateur station out of service, and
- the provision of the list of assigned German call signs and their holders.
(1) An administrative offence shall be deemed to have been committed by anyone who, intentionally or negligently,
1. operates an amateur station in contravention of
a) §3(3), or
b) §5(4) subparagraph 2, or2. transmits a message in contravention of §5(5) sentence 2 of this Act.
(2) Such offences may be punishable by a fine not exceeding twenty thousand Deutschmarks in the case of an offence according to (1) subparagraph 1(b) above, or by a fine not exceeding ten thousand Deutschmarks in the other cases.
(3) Administrative authority within the meaning of §36(1) subparagraph 1 of the Administrative Offences Act shall be the regulatory authority.
(1) The functions ensuing from this Act and the ordinances having the force of law issued by virtue of this Act shall be discharged by the regulatory authority for telecommunications and posts (§66(1) of the Telecommunications Act). It shall also be the regulatory authority's responsibility to monitor observance of this Act and the ordinances having the force of law issued by virtue of this Act.
(2) The functions and powers assigned to the regulatory authority under this Act shall, until 31 December 1997, be discharged and exercised by the Federal Office for Posts and Telecommunications.
(3) When ordinances having the force of law to be issued by virtue of this Act are being prepared, the representatives of the expert groups or associations involved may, as provided for by the Common Ministerial Rules of Procedure, be informed and requested to provide documents and be given the opportunity to present their views.
(1) In the event of violations of this Act or of ordinances having the force of law issued by virtue of this Act the regulatory authority may order operation to be restricted or amateur stations to be taken out of service.
(2) The regulatory authority will order restriction or prohibition of operation to be enforced immediately if such operation could constitute a hazard to the safety of life or to property of significant value of another person. The same shall apply if there is reason to believe that the radio amateur is using frequency bands allocated to other radio services and this may cause considerable interference to such services. §80(2) subparagraph 4 of the Rules of the Administrative Courts shall remain unaffected.
Licences for the setting up and operation of amateur stations granted prior to the entry into force of this Act shall continue to be valid under the conditions provided for by this Act.
This Act shall enter into force on the day following promulgation. At the same time the Law concerning Amateur Radio Service in the revised version published in Federal Law Gazette Part III, classification number 9022-1, shall cease to have effect.
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The above translation was published by the Federal Regulatory Authority for Telecommunications and Posts. Reproduced with kind permission. This HTML edition by Lawrence Schäfer and © 2001 Gerhard Dannemann. The contents of this page may be downloaded and printed out in single copies for individual use only. Making multiple copies without permission is prohibited.