Request for transit

Republic of Austria

Austria - Federal Law on Cooperation with the ICC (EN) 2002

Part 2
Specific provisions

Section 4
Custody pending surrender, surrender and transit

31. Transit and transport

1. At the request of the International Criminal Court, persons may be transported through Austria and held in custody to secure such transit.
2. There is no need to apply for authorisation where the person is conveyed by air and no landing is scheduled on Austria territory.
3. In the event of an unscheduled landing, the person in transit shall be arrested, and the International Criminal Court shall be requested to transmit a request for transit together with the documents referred to in article 89(3)(b) of the Statute.
4. The person in transit shall be released if the request for transit has not been received within 96 hours. Such release shall not preclude a renewed arrest on the basis of a request pursuant to paragraph 24(1) or 26(1) above.
5. The decision on transit shall be taken by the Federal Minister of Justice with the consent of the Federal Minister of the Interior. Such transit shall be approved unless it would impede or delay surrender. A domestic conviction for a criminal offence not within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court shall not prevent transit. The authorisation of transit is not open to appeal.
6. Paragraphs 1, 2, 3 and 5 shall apply at the request of the International Criminal Court or of a State that has agreed to enforce a sentence passed by the Court for the transit of persons through the territory of the Republic of Austria on the understanding that the International Criminal Court shall be requested to transmit a request for transit together with a copy of the enforceable judgement in the event of an unscheduled landing.

Rome Statute

Article 89 Surrender of persons to the Court

3.

(a) A State Party shall authorize, in accordance with its national procedural law, transportation through its territory of a person being surrendered to the Court by another State, except where transit through that State would impede or delay the surrender.

(b) A request by the Court for transit shall be transmitted in accordance with article 87. The request for transit shall contain:

(i) A description of the person being transported;

(ii) A brief statement of the facts of the case and their legal characterization; and

(iii) The warrant for arrest and surrender;

(c) A person being transported shall be detained in custody during the period of transit;

(d) No authorization is required if the person is transported by air and no landing is scheduled on the territory of the transit State;

(e) If an unscheduled landing occurs on the territory of the transit State, that State may require a request for transit from the Court as provided for in subparagraph (b). The transit State shall detain the person being transported until the request for transit is received and the transit is effected, provided that detention for purposes of this subparagraph may not be extended beyond 96 hours from the unscheduled landing unless the request is received within that time.