Commentaries: Art. 349c

Personal data may not be disclosed to the competent authority of a state which is not linked to Switzerland by one of the Schengen association agreements (third country), or to an international body if this would seriously endanger the privacy of the data subjects, in particular due to a lack of adequate protection.
Adequate protection shall be ensured by:
1. the legislation of the third country, if the European Union has so provided in a in a resolution;
2. an international treaty;
3. specific guarantees.
If the disclosing authority is a federal authority, it shall inform the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC) of the categories of disclosures of personal data made on the basis of specific guarantees pursuant to paragraph 2 letter c. Every disclosure is documented.¹
By way of derogation from paragraph 1, personal data may be disclosed to the competent authority of a third country or an international body if disclosure is necessary in a particular case:
1. to protect the life or the physical integrity of the data subject or of a third party;
2. to prevent imminent serious danger threatening the public security of a Schengen or a third country;
3. to prevent, detect or prosecute a criminal offence, provided that disclosure does not conflict with the overriding legitimate interests of the data subject;
4. to exercise or enforce legal claims against an authority responsible for the prevention, detection or prosecution of a criminal offence, provided that disclosure does not conflict with the overriding legitimate interests of the data subject.
If the disclosing authority is a federal authority, it shall inform the FDPIC²of the disclosures pursuant to paragraph 4.

Amended by Annex 1 No II 26 of the Data Protection Act of 25 Sept. 2020, in force since 1 Sept. 2023 (AS 2022 491;BBl 2017 6941). ↩
Abbreviation in accordance with Annex 1 No II 26 of the Data Protection Act of 25 Sept. 2020, in force since 1 Sept. 2023 (AS 2022 491;BBl 2017 6941). This amendment has been made in the provisions specified in the AS. ↩

Art. 349c

Footnotes