Europe

European States are home to long-established market places, major auction houses and a dense network of museums, archives and libraries. This density creates a strong demand for coordination: traceability of transactions, harmonization of controls, circulation of cultural property within the European area.

It also explains why the first accessions to OIMAP were European, which shaped the Organization's first directives.

European States share similar legal traditions but have different national rules: limitation periods for claims of recovery, the regime of good faith of the purchaser, due diligence obligations of professionals. OIMAP helps bring these practices closer together without making them uniform.

The OIMAP Directives 2019, adopted by the region, serve as a common reference and are supplemented by national fact sheets.

The Paris office, based at Headquarters, is the day-to-day contact for European States: monitoring of accessions, organization of meetings, support for focal points. The Geneva office ensures liaison with international organizations and also monitors the Middle East region.

Together, they ensure that the region has both an administrative and a diplomatic presence.

European States have selected three priorities: strengthening controls at the external borders of the European area, training officials to identify stolen or illicitly exported goods, and developing data exchanges between specialized services.

These priorities are taken up in the Organization's training activities and coordinated operations.

European administrations may take part in focal point meetings, propose experts to the national network and request the support of the Paris office for their projects. Market professionals are involved through open consultations.

Requests should be addressed to the Member States Relations Directorate, whose contact details appear at the bottom of this page.