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Article 208

States to which territory of the former Austro-Hungarian Monarchy is transferred and States arising from the dismemberment of that Monarchy shall acquire all property and possessions situated within their territories belonging to the former or existing Austrian Government. For the purposes of this Article, the property and possessions of the former or existing Austrian Government shall be deemed to include the property of the former Austrian Empire and the interest of that Empire in the joint property of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, as well as all the property of the Crown, and the private property of members of the former Royal Family of Austro-Hungary.

These States shall, however, have no claim to any property of the former or existing Government of Austria situated outside their own respective territories.

The value of such property and possessions acquired by States other than Austria shall be fixed by the Reparation Commission and placed by that Commission to the credit of Austria and to the debit of the State acquiring such property on account of the sums due for reparation. The Reparation Commission shall deduct from the value of the public property thus acquired an amount proportionate to the contribution in money, land or material made directly by any province or commune or other autonomous local authority towards the cost of such property.

Without prejudice to Article 203 relating to secured Debt, in the case of each State acquiring property under the provisions of this Article, the amount placed to the credit of Austria and to the debit of the said State in accordance with the preceding paragraph shall be reduced by the value of the amount of the liability in respect of the unsecured Debt of the former Austrian Government assumed by that State under the provisions of Article 203 which, in the opinion of the Reparation Commission, represents expenditure upon the property so acquired. The value shall be fixed by the Reparation Commission on such basis as the Commission may consider equitable.

Property of the former and existing Austrian Governments shall be deemed to include a share of the real property in Bosnia-Herzegovina of all descriptions for which, under Article 5 of the Convention of 26th February 1909, the Governments of the former Austro-Hungarian Monarchy paid Turkish pounds 2,500,000 to the Ottoman Government. Such share shall be proportionate to the share which the former Austrian Empire contributed to the above payment, and the value of this share, as assessed by the Reparation Commission, shall be credited to Austria on account of reparation.

As exception to the above, there shall be transferred without payment:

(1) The property and possessions of provinces, communes and other local autonomous institutions of the former Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, including those in Bosnia-Herzegovina which did not belong to the former Austro-Hungarian Monarchy;

(2) Schools and hospitals the property of the former Austro-Hungarian Monarchy;

(3) Forests which belonged to the former Kingdom of Poland.

Further, any building or other property situated in the respective territories transferred to the States referred to in the first paragraph whose principle value lies in its historic interest and associations, and which formally belonged to the Kingdom of Bohemia, the Kingdom of Poland, the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia-Dalmatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Republic of Ragusa, the Venitian Republic or the Episcopal Principalities of Trient and Bressanone, may, subject to the approval of the Reparation Commission, be transferred to the Government entitled thereto without payment.