UNOV Protocol manual

The present manual is published as non-binding guidance and is subject to change without notice. This manual is by no means an exhaustive review of protocol matters and diplomatic etiquette. Its objective is to formulate basic guidelines and fundamental norms and practices of protocol and administrative requirements at the United Nations Office at Vienna.

The practices and rules of protocol applied by the United Nations Office at Vienna aligns with the practices and procedures applied by the Protocol and Liaison Service of the United Nations Headquarters in New York.

This purpose of this manual is to facilitate, enhance and ameliorate the co-operation between permanent/ observer missions and the Protocol and NGO Liaison Office of the United Nations Office at Vienna.

I Introduction

The Protocol and NGO Liaison Office is a unit within the Office of the Director-General /Executive Director of the United Nations Office at Vienna and the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime. Its basic functions include the following

To advise permanent/observer missions, and the departments of the United Nations Office at Vienna and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, on matters of protocol usage and norms of diplomatic etiquette accepted at the United Nations;
To accredit all diplomatic personnel and support staff of permanent/observer missions, provide them with the respective United Nations grounds passes and to maintain a data base on all the members of the permanent/observer missions (Blue Book);
To assist permanent/observer missions in organising official, cultural and social functions at the Vienna International Centre and to co-ordinate major official observances such as the presentation of credentials to the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Vienna, the arrangement of flag ceremonies for newly admitted Member States, signing ceremonies, the preparation of official and state visits by the Secretary-General, Heads of State or Government or other dignitaries and the observance of official mourning;
To provide guidance on diplomatic protocol and etiquette.

For the purposes of the present manual, the term “permanent representative” refers to the permanent representative of a fully accredited permanent mission of a Member State to the United Nations Office at Vienna, the term “permanent observer” to the head of an observer mission or a delegation of an intergovernmental organization.
The term “mission” refers to the permanent mission of a Member State, or of an observer State or of an intergovernmental organization accredited to the United Nations Office at Vienna.
In this publication, the term “organization” refers to United Nations Office at Vienna. In most cases, rules and procedures for the organizations based in Vienna do not differ significantly.
The designation “protocol office” refers to the Protocol and NGO Liaison Office, Office of the Director-General, United Nations Office at Vienna.
The designation “chief of protocol” refers to the person responsible for protocol matters. For the United Nations Office at Vienna, that is the Protocol and External Relations Officer.

Contact details are as follows

Address	United Nations Office at Vienna Protocol and NGO Liaison Office Wagramer Strasse 5 PO Box 500 A - 1400 Vienna
Email	unovprotocol@un.org
Telephone	(+43-1) 26060-4090

II Opening of a new permanent mission

When a country has been admitted by the General Assembly as a State Member of the United Nations, it is expected that it will establish a permanent mission and appoint a permanent representative in New York and at other major United Nations centres, such as Geneva, Vienna and Nairobi.
When establishing a permanent mission to the United Nations Office at Vienna, the Member State shall inform the appropriate Austrian authorities before nominating its permanent representative to the relevant organization.
It is current practice for a Government to inform the Secretary-General of the United Nations, in writing, through the intermediary of its permanent mission in New York, of its intention to establish a permanent mission in Vienna. The Secretary-General then informs the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Vienna. The Director-General brings the information to the attention of the head of the permanent mission of the host country. The UNOV Protocol Office will then provide adequate guidance throughout the process to the newly established mission.

III Appointment of a new permanent representative

In conformity with international law and United Nations practice, the term “permanent representative” defines a person of the appropriate diplomatic rank who permanently resides at the seat of the organization and is the head of an established permanent representation (mission) with a postal address, telephone number and an email address. The bilateral embassy may also function as the permanent mission, unless a separate mission has been set up to deal specifically with international organizations.

A. Accreditation of a Permanent Representative

Some States maintain specific permanent missions to the organizations other than their diplomatic representations to Austria, headed by a permanent representative. In such a case, the rank of the permanent representative should be mentioned in the letter of credential.
When a permanent representative is serving on a purely multilateral basis, the State informs the host country separately of its intentions to accredit a permanent representative to the international organizations in Vienna.
Some States appoint a different permanent representative to each international organization in Vienna. In such cases, the protocol offices of the respective organizations keep each other informed of new appointments.
It has become the practice of many Governments of Member States to appoint bilateral ambassadors extraordinary and plenipotentiary to Austria as permanent representatives to the international organizations based in Vienna. Separate credentials should be addressed to the Government of Austria in cases where permanent representatives are also accredited as the head of mission of their respective countries to the Federal Republic of Austria on a bilateral basis.
When permanent representatives of Member States are accredited to the United Nations and Austria (or any third country simultaneously), such dual accreditation must be indicated in the letter of credential and transmitted separately to the Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs of Austria.
In some cases, Member States may prefer to accredit a Permanent Representative simultaneously to the organizations in Geneva and Vienna with the residence located in one of the two cities.
In rare instances, a country may not maintain a mission to the Vienna-based organizations, in which case it may be covered by its mission at United Nations Headquarters in New York or from the respective capital
In order for a permanent representative to assume his/her work as the Permanent Representative of the respective Member State to the Vienna-based organizations, the representative has to present credentials to the executive head of the organizations to which the Permanent Representative is accredited.
It should be noted that diplomatic practice normally excludes the possibility of accrediting a representative to UNOV with permanent residence in his or her home country, except in the case of the permanent/resident representative of the host country.

B. Presentation of credentials

When a new permanent representative assumes office, the mission should request the UNOV protocol office to make arrangements for the presentation of credentials.
It is advisable for the permanent representative to visit or contact by telephone the chief of protocol of the organization and to bring or send in advance electronic copy of the letter of credential and official curriculum vitae. The chief of protocol will brief the permanent representative on the established procedure for the presentation of credentials to the Director-General/Executive Director and will review the letter of credential of the new permanent representative in order to ensure its conformity with the accepted format. The chief of protocol will then, in close dialogue with the Permanent Mission, make the necessary arrangements for the new permanent representative to present his or her credentials.
Credentials of permanent representatives for the United Nations Office at Vienna are issued either by the head of State or Government or by the Minister for Foreign Affairs and should be addressed to the Secretary-General of the United Nations by name and presented to the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Vienna, who represents the Secretary-General in Vienna and receives credentials on his or her behalf;
According to established diplomatic procedure, once a time and date for the presentation of credentials has been arranged, the Chief of Protocol welcomes the newly appointed permanent representative in the Vienna International Centre. The permanent representative will then be escorted to the office of the Director-general/ Executive Director. The permanent representative may be accompanied by one member of his or her delegation;
The presentation of credentials usually takes place in the office of the Director-General/ Executive Director. During the presentation, photographs of the Director-General/ Executive Director with the newly appointed permanent representative are taken by a photographer provided by the UNOV protocol office. Electronic copies of the photographs will be sent to the mission concerned. Then, less formally, the Director-General/ Executive Director briefs the new permanent representative on present and forthcoming activities of the organization with the represented country.
According to established practice, the meeting will usually not take longer than 15 minutes. Permanent representatives are not expected to make formal speeches during the presentation ceremony.
It is customary for a new permanent representative to inform other permanent representatives by letter of the presentation of his or her credentials.
The federal authorities of Austria, as well as those of the City of Vienna, appreciate courtesy calls by newly appointed permanent representatives. Given the large number of diplomatic and consular missions in Vienna, however, such courtesy calls are left entirely to the discretion of the new permanent representative.
The accreditation procedure described above may also be followed by observer organizations and States of intergovernmental and other organizations. In the former case, it is also possible to apply a simplified procedure whereby the letter of accreditation is replaced by a written notification signed by the head of the respective organization.
After the presentation of credentials and on the advice of the new permanent representative, a press release is issued by the United Nations Information Service in Vienna, which in turn distributes the information among the United Nations units and permanent missions of Member States.

C. End of duty period

Upon completion of an assignment, it is customary for a permanent representative to pay a farewell visit to the executive heads of the organization or organizations to which he or she is accredited and to inform other permanent representatives, in writing, of his or her departure. The organization informs the Protocol Office of the Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs of Austria.
Before relinquishing his/ her post, a Permanent Representative/ Observer should inform the Protocol Office of the United Nations Office at Vienna in writing and communicate the name of the member of the mission who will act as chargé d’affaires a.i. pending the arrival of the new Permanent Representative/ Observer.

IV Appointments and changes to a permanent mission

A. Appointment of staff members

For diplomatic staff members of a Permanent Mission, Permanent Missions shall use the accreditation form provided at the beginning of each year in order to accredit their newly appointed diplomatic staff members. Together with a passport copy and a copy of the legitimation card, the above-mentioned accreditation form, duly signed by the permanent representative or chargé d’affaires, a.i., should be submitted to unovprotocol@un.org.
For support and technical staff members of a Permanent Mission without diplomatic status, Permanent Missions shall use the accreditation form provided at the beginning of each year in order to accredit their newly appointed non-diplomatic staff members. Together with a passport copy, a copy of the Meldezettel (residence registration) and a copy of the legitimation card and a copy of a driver’s license (for drivers only), the above-mentioned accreditation form, signed and sealed by the Permanent Representative or the Chargé d’affaires, should be submitted to unovprotocol@un.org.
Trainees and interns should be registered as support staff members of the respective permanent missions and supporting documents as for support staff members shall be submitted to the UNOV protocol office.
When a staff member is married to another member of a mission who is also employed by the mission, both must be registered separately as staff members of the mission.
It is important to note that if a Member State intends to accredit as a permanent representative or as a member of its mission a stateless person, a citizen of the Republic of Austria or a national of a third State, prior agreement from the Government of Austria is required. Such clearance must be attached to the letter requesting accreditation
Permanent missions are requested to inform directly the substantive United Nations offices, about the forthcoming arrival of members of official delegations and/or support staff who will attend official meetings held under the auspices of the United Nations.

B. Changes to a permanent mission

For changes affecting diplomatic members of a permanent mission, such as promotion or changes of designation or changes affecting the mission itself, such as change of address, telephone number (official) or email addresses, missions should inform the protocol office through a note verbal at their earliest convenience.
The protocol office of the United Nations Office at Vienna will inform the Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs of Austria of all changes concerning permanent missions.

C. Chargé d'affaires/ Acting Permanent Representative

In the event of a temporary absence from the mission, it is recommended that the permanent representative advise the protocol office of the United Nations Office at Vienna and other permanent missions by way of a note verbal, indicating the name of the person designated to perform the duties of head of mission in the capacity of chargé d’affaires ad interim during the absence of the permanent representative or observer.
If a chargé d’affaires, a.i. is not designated in the manner described above, his or her appointment may not be recognized in any document of the organization, nor will he or she be accorded the precedence to which he or she would otherwise be entitled in any official functions in which he or she may participate.
Since a chargé d’affaires, a.i. cannot appoint another chargé d’affaires, should there be several consecutive designated officials during the absence of the permanent representative, their names and the dates of their respective appointments should be forwarded to the Protocol Office by the permanent representative before his or her departure. The permanent representative should also notify the Protocol Office of the date of his or her resumption of duties.
A Member State may appoint an acting permanent representative by means of an official letter signed by the Minister for Foreign Affairs.

D. Grounds passes

Based on the submitted documents, Members of a permanent mission are entitled to grounds passes for the Vienna International Centre. Diplomatic staff members are entitled to grounds passes for themselves and for one dependent family member above the age of eighteen. These will be issued to them in person by the VIC Pass Office upon presentation of passports and/or Austrian legitimation cards (Legitimationskarten).
Grounds passes with commissary access are issued only to diplomatic members of the missions and to one of their dependents. Austrian nationals are not granted commissary access, cf. the host country agreement between the Federal Republic of Austria and the United Nations.
Initial access to the Vienna International Center is granted to accredited diplomatic staff members for a total period of three years; non-diplomatic staff members are granted initial access for one year. Extensions of grounds passes, upon submission of the above-mentioned supporting documents to the protocol offices are given for one year at the time.
Interns and trainees of a Permanent Missions are granted access to the Vienna International Centre for a minimum of two months and a maximum of six months from the date of receipt by the UNOV protocol office. Grounds passes of interns cannot be extended beyond the initial six months.
Upon completion of appointment, Permanent Missions shall inform the respective protocol offices through an accreditation form or Note Verbale, about the departure in concern, indicating the exact date of departure. Grounds passes of departed staff members of Permanent Missions and their dependents (if applicable), shall be returned to the UNOV protocol office per post.
In the case of a lost or stolen Grounds Pass, Missions shall submit to the UNOV Protocol Office a copy of the police lost report known as “Verlustmeldung” together with a Note Verbale requesting the issuance of a replacement Grounds Pass in order to obtain the new Grounds Pass. The replacement Grounds Pass will be issued to the staff member in person by the VIC Pass Office upon presentation of passport and/or Austrian legitimation card.

V The "Blue Book"

The UNOV “Blue Book” is an open data platform of all permanent/observer missions with their addresses, telephone numbers, email addresses, dates of national holidays and names of diplomatic staff with their ranks and functional titles. Spouses of diplomatic staff are also listed. These entries are based on information communicated to the UNOV Protocol and NGO Liaison Office (unovprotocol@un.org) by the permanent missions. Electronic information is updated on a daily basis based on the written information received from missions. The UNOV “Blue Book” also provides information on non-member states maintaining permanent observer missions; intergovernmental organizations maintaining permanent offices and other entities maintaining permanent observer offices.

VI Order of Precedence

The issue of precedence in the United Nations is complex due to the different groups of participants. These include Heads of State or Government, Cabinet Ministers, Permanent Representatives and Permanent Observers, senior United Nations officials, intergovernmental organizations and the larger UN family of specialized agencies. The issue of precedence of government representatives to the United Nations was settled in 1968 through a Note from the Secretary-General (document A/CN.4/L.129).
The precedence between members of a national delegation is as follows:

Heads of State
Heads of Government
Ministers of Foreign Affairs
Other Cabinet Ministers

Permanent Representatives who are Head of Delegation are ranked after Cabinet Ministers and then come their collaborators as listed below. Within a permanent mission, precedence is determined by the sending state. It is therefore of utmost importance that the mission notifies the protocol office of a newly arriving representative and his/her respective ranks within the mission.
Precedence among permanent representatives accredited to the Vienna-based organizations is determined by the date of presentation of credentials. Acting permanent representatives/ chargés d’affaires take precedence after permanent representatives, in accordance with the date of nomination. As a matter of course, the permanent representative of the host country is given precedence over other permanent representatives.

The most usual order of precedence between members of Permanent Missions is as follows:

Permanent Representatives
(Chargé d'affaires)

Minister

Minister-Counselor

Counselor

First Secretary

Second Secretary

Third Secretary

Attaché

Assistant Attaché

* The graphic presented above represents the standard order of precedence within a mission. The order of precedence may vary between missions, depending on the number of diplomatic members nominated by the sending state.

The following classifications among organizations represented at the United Nations Office at Vienna and the specialized agencies located in the Vienna International Centre has been agreed, basing its order largely on the size of the geographical area covered under an organization’s mandate:

Major international organizations; the United Nations, which has a general character and operates throughout the world, heads the list.
Regional organizations of a political and military character.
Major international organizations of an administrative, economic, social or cultural character, starting with the United Nations specialized agencies.
Major regional organizations with a non-military character.
Intergovernmental administrative organizations with world or regional competence.
International non-governmental (autonomous) organizations

Among the specialized agencies and other international organizations linked to the United Nations by special cooperative agreements, precedence is usually given in chronological order of the date of the convention binding them to the United Nations (see annex VI).
Among the Vienna-based international organizations, the order of precedence is as follows:

United Nations Office at Vienna
International Atomic Energy Agency
United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)
Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO)

Between permanent representatives and heads of secretariats of international organizations, precedence is as follows:

In meetings convened by one of the Vienna-based organizations, Member States have precedence over the secretariat;
The executive heads of the Vienna-based organizations are given precedence over permanent representatives when invited by a permanent representative;
Precedence among the executive heads of the organizations is determined according to the date of the agreement between the organization and the United Nations. Officials in acting, interim, performing the duties of and/or similar positions take precedence after the elected heads of the specialized agencies, irrespective of the date of agreement between the organization and the United Nations.
As the representative of the Secretary-General in Vienna, the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Vienna always takes precedence over the other executive heads, except when the Secretary-General is present in Vienna.
The executive heads of other intergovernmental organizations are given precedence over permanent representatives depending on the nature of the specific occasion.

For precedence between permanent representatives and other delegates attending conferences, in social gatherings related to a conference, precedence among heads of delegation is determined either according to the alphabetical order of the countries represented or in conformity with the established practice of the conference in question. Presiding officers may take precedence over other heads of delegation. In gatherings that are not related to a conference, precedence is given to permanent representatives.
Where social gatherings are held in honour of a specific person, the guest of honour takes precedence over all other guests; the name of the guest of honour should be mentioned in the invitation. In social gatherings organized by, or in connection with, special bodies, the established practice of those bodies prevails.

VII Official visits of dignitaries

Permanent missions are requested to inform the Chief of Protocol of the United Nations Office at Vienna, at the earliest possible date, of official visits to the Vienna International Centre from their head of State or Government, members of the royal family, vice-presidents, ministers for foreign affairs or special envoys, so that the necessary arrangements can be made.
The permanent missions should inform the Protocol Office in writing as early as possible of the following:

The dates of arrival and departure;
The date and time of the planned visit to the Vienna International Centre;
list of officials accompanying the dignitary to the Vienna International Centre, with their names and titles, identifying, in particular, those involved in security, press, photography and media coverage.

The reception of dignitaries in the Plaza and the “red carpet” treatment is reserved solely for heads of State, the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the President of the United Nations General Assembly.
A motorcade with the head of State will pass through a special gate (fire gate) to the Vienna International Centre Plaza, where the flags of the visiting State and the United Nations will be displayed. A guard of honour will salute the head of State upon arrival. The Chief of Protocol will greet the head of State as he or she alights from the car and will escort him or her to the entrance to be received by the executive head(s). The head of State, accompanied by the executive head(s) and escorted by the Chief of Protocol, will proceed with the execution of the program prepared for his or her visit. At the end of the program, the executive head(s) will accompany the Head of State, escorted by the chief(s) of protocol, to the exit in the Rotunda, where farewells will be made.
On the occasion of a visit of a head of Government, he or she will arrive at Gate 2 and will be received by the chief(s) of protocol at the C entrance of the Rotunda. The Chief of Protocol will escort the head of Government, together with a courtesy Security Officer, to the office of the executive head. The executive head will greet the dignitary and bid him or her farewell at the elevator.

VIII Courtesy calls and ceremonies

Officials visiting Vienna can request for courtesy calls on the Director-General/ Executive Director of UNOV/ UNODC. In order to arrange a courtesy call, the Protocol Office shall receive an official request including the date and time of the visit.
The Protocol Office will liaise with the official visiting party and UNOV security prior to the visit. It is imperative for the official visiting party to provide the Protocol Office with names and titles of the complete delegation including security escorts, vehicle license plate numbers and name of drivers.
In the case when the signing of legal documents has been negotiated by the substantive offices and cleared with the legal office, the Protocol office is notified. The signing ceremony is held to finalize the agreement in consultation with the Office of the Director-General/Executive Director, substantive offices and co-signatories of the agreement.
Arrangements for the signing ceremony are made in close cooperation with the Office of the Director-General/Executive Director, substantive offices and co-signatories of the agreement. The date and time of the signing ceremony are confirmed and communicated to all parties by the Protocol Office.

IX United Nations Gift Policy

The United Nations is very concerned with ensuring both the independence and impartiality of its staff members. As such, according to regulation 1.2 in the United Nations staff rules on honors, gifts and remuneration, no staff member shall accept any honor, decoration, favor, gift or remuneration from any Government.
Following the same regulation, if refusal of an unanticipated honor, decoration, favor or gift from a Government would cause embarrassment to the Organization, the staff member may receive it on behalf of the Organization and then report and entrust it to the Secretary-General, who will either retain it for the Organization or arrange for its disposal for the benefit of the Organization or for a charitable purpose.
No staff member shall accept any honor, decoration, favor, gift or remuneration from any non-governmental source without first obtaining the approval of the Secretary-General.
In practice, “consumable goods” (e.g. chocolates, etc.) may be kept by the officials, after having been reported to the appropriate office, but must be shared with colleagues. Nominal gifts (e.g. calendars or books) can also be kept by the officials.

X Composition of Governments of Member and observer States

A comprehensive list of the Governments of all Member and observer States with the official titles of the respective heads of State and Government and ministers for foreign affairs is issued on a regular basis by the United Nations Protocol and Liaison Service at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. Permanent missions of all member and observer States are requested to inform the United Nations Headquarters in New York, through its protocol office, of the composition of their Governments and all changes thereto. Communications from the missions on this subject serve as the basis for all official correspondence between the United Nations and the Governments of respective States.

XI Official name and flag of a Member State

Permanent missions of all member and observer States are requested to inform the chief of protocol of the organization to which they are accredited of any change in the official name or flag of their State.
In the event of a change in the national flag, the permanent representative or chargé d’affaires should send a letter to the Chief of Protocol of the United Nations Office at Vienna, providing information on the nature of the change, a description and, where appropriate, the colour codes of the new flag and stating the effective date from when the new flag is to be flown. A sample of the new flag, corresponding to the United Nations flag dimensions of 4 feet by 6 feet, should also be sent to the Chief of Protocol.

XII United Nations Flag Code

The United Nations Office at Vienna follows the flag code as prescribed in the Secretary-General’s bulletin ST/SGB/132, entitled “The United Nations Flag Code and Regulations”.
Under article 5 of the Flag Code, the United Nations Flag may be displayed or otherwise used in accordance with the Flag Code by Governments, organizations and individuals to demonstrate support of the United Nations and to further its principles and purposes, either alone or with one or more other flags;
The Flag of the United Nations is not to be subordinated to any other flag. When the United Nations Flag is displayed with one or more other flags, all flags so displayed should be displayed on the same level and should be of approximately equal size. On no account may any flag displayed with the United Nations Flag be displayed on a higher level than the United Nations Flag and on no account may any flag so displayed with the United Nations Flag be larger than the United Nations Flag.
The United Nations flag shall be used by any unit acting on behalf of the United Nations such as any Committee or Commission or other entity established by the United Nations in such circumstances not covered in the United Nations Flag Code as may become necessary in the interests of the United Nations. The flag may be flown from all buildings, offices and other property occupied by any specialized agency of the United Nations.

A. Protocol of Mourning at the United Nations

Whenever the Secretary-General of the United Nations proclaims that the United Nations is in official mourning, the United Nations flag, wherever displayed, will be flown at half-mast during the entire period of official mourning.
In the event of the death of a head of State or Government of a Member State, the United Nations flag will be flown at half-mast in accordance with the United Nations Flag Code and Regulations once the official communication has been received by the Chief of Protocol of the United Nations Office at Vienna. No other flags will be flown at that time. If the communication is received after 7.00 a.m., the United Nations flag will be flown at half-mast the following day or on the day of the official funeral, in accordance with the preference of the Government concerned.
Pursuant to the relevant regulations, the United Nations flag may also be flown at half mast, on the special instruction of the Secretary-General, on the death of a world leader who has had a significant connection with the United Nations.
Upon receipt of a communication from the mission, the Director-General and/or the Chief of Protocol or a designated representative of the Organization will pay a visit to the mission concerned to sign the condolence book.
The head of a specialized agency is authorized to by the Secretary-General to lower the United Nations Flag flown by the agency to half-mast in cases where he/she wishes to follow the official mourning of the country in which the office of the agency is located. He/she may also lower the United Nations Flag to half-mast on any occasion when the specialized agency is in official mourning.

XIII Use of the conference facilities at the Vienna International Centre

As a facility of the Vienna International Centre, the conference and meeting rooms are at the disposal of the organizations based at the Centre, the permanent/observer missions of member States and intergovernmental organizations with which a relationship agreement has been finalized (or with which the negotiation of a relationship agreement has been authorized by the relevant governing body) and committees of the non-governmental organizations with consultative status accredited to Vienna, upon availability. The use of the facilities is restricted to meetings that reflect the purposes of the relevant entity, that are of positive value directly to an organization based at the Centre or to a particular objective or programme endorsed by one of the organizations and are subject to availability.
Any presentations, film screenings, lectures or seminars sponsored by the permanent/observer missions are to be of a cultural, scientific or technical nature and without any political connotation that could be perceived as offensive to any Member State. Requests for the use of the premises require a written notification to the UNOV Conference Management Service.
The relevant authority will then inform the executive head of the Vienna-based organization concerned. Following that, endorsement from the Vienna International Centre Infrastructure Committee (comprising representatives of the Vienna-based organizations) will be sought. The decision of the Committee will be considered final.

XIV Media accreditation to the Vienna International Center

Bona fide representatives of the media – print media, photo, radio, television and film, news agencies, freelance journalists and online media – who fully meet accreditation requirements can be accredited to the Vienna International Centre and to all UN conferences in Vienna. For accreditation of press, the UNOV Protocol Office refers to the News and Media Liaison Unit of the United Nations Information Service (press.vienna@un.org).
Media representatives can be accredited for one-day access, event access, conference access or yearly access.

XV Commissary

Access to the Commissary is regulated by Rule 2.01 of the “Rules Regarding the Commissary at the Vienna International Center”. In order to be granted Commissary access, the diplomatic staff member concerned need to have obtained a Legitimation Card (Legitimationskarten) from the appropriate Austrian authorities, indicating the staff members diplomatic privileges.
The Protocol Office, through the VIC Pass Office, informs the Commissary Management of any changes in the composition of Permanent Missions of Member/ Observer States and staff members entitlement to Commissary privileges.
Each holder of a VIC Grounds Pass validated for Commissary Access is entitled to request an additional VIC Grounds Pass for one member of his/ her immediate family (spouse/partner, unmarried child, parent or sibling living in the same household), as per Rule 2.02 of the “Rules Regarding the Commissary at the Vienna International Center”.
Holders of a VIC Grounds Pass with Commissary access shall visit the Commissary Information Desk in order to activate the Grounds Pass for Commissary purchases.

XVI Security at the Vienna International Centre

Under the respective headquarters agreements, the premises of the international organizations at the Vienna International Centre are recognized as extraterritorial by the Government of Austria and are under the control and authority of the United Nations. Although Austrian laws, and in particular fire-protection and security regulations, apply generally within the Centre, except as otherwise provided in the headquarters agreements, Austrian officials or persons exercising public authority in Austria are precluded from entering the Centre, except with the consent of the executive head of the organization concerned. Consequently, the maintenance of security within the Centre, including the maintenance of public order, the protection of life and property, the control of access and the provision of fire-protection services, is the responsibility of UNOV, though it may call on the appropriate Austrian authorities for assistance and cooperates with those authorities in carrying out security functions
The Security rules, which are therefore promulgated by the executive heads of UNOV, IAEA, UNIDO and CTBTO are designed to assist the organizations in carrying out their responsibility for security at the Vienna International Centre.

XVII VIC Garage Administration

Diplomatic personnel of permanent missions are entitled to special vehicle identification stickers permitting them to enter the Vienna International Centre and park their vehicles on the premises. Identification decals for vehicles with diplomatic plates are issued for a period of two years.
In order to obtain or renew identification decals, members of permanent missions are requested to fill out a form, which, together with a Note Verbal from the mission concerned requesting issuance or renewal of a parking permit, should be submitted to the Garage Administration in room C0E15. For convenience of processing, it is preferred that each permanent mission submit its requests for parking decals in bulk.
Diplomatic personnel of permanent/observer missions or intergovernmental or other organizations with full observer status and maintaining permanent offices at Vienna are entitled to a limited number of identification stickers per delegation, with the understanding that each application for a parking sticker will be considered on an individual basis.
A United Nations parking sticker authorizes only the vehicle for which it was issued. Diplomats and chauffeurs must present valid grounds passes to the United Nations security personnel upon entering the Centre. Passengers in diplomatic vehicles without appropriate passes are required to obtain some form of clearance (visitor’s badges or similar) from the Security and Safety Section. Drivers of vehicles with a valid grounds pass may enter through Gate 2 (diplomatic staff only), Gate 4 or Gate 5 (until 12 p.m.). Passengers without a valid grounds pass should enter the Vienna International Centre through Gate 1.
The stickers must be prominently displayed and visible to security personnel and Garage Administration staff at entry points and while vehicles are parked on the premises.
The above measures are taken in order to facilitate United Nations security control and to ensure the safety and convenience of the diplomatic community. Parking rules are set out in annex IX.