The Government of Liechtenstein

Liechtenstein - Government

Based on the etymolgy of Liechtenstein, it was named after the Liechtenstein dynasty that purchased and united the counties of Schellenburg and Vaduz and that was allowed by the Holy Roman Emperor in 1719 to rename the new property after their family; the name in German means "light (bright) stone". The Government system in this country is the constitutional monarchy type and the different Administrative divisions includes: 11 communes (Gemeinden, singular - Gemeinde); Balzers, Eschen, Gamprin, Mauren, Planken, Ruggell, Schaan, Schellenberg, Triesen, Triesenberg, Vaduz

National symbols

Princely hat (crown); national colors: blue, red.

The flag

The National flag of Liechtenstein has two equal horizontal bands of blue (top) and red with a gold crown on the hoist side of the blue band; the colors may derive from the blue and red livery design used in the principality's household in the 18th century; the prince's crown was introduced in 1937 to distinguish the flag from that of Haiti.

The National Anthem

Title	"Oben am jungen Rhein" (High Above the Young Rhine)
Lyric/music	Jakob Joseph JAUCH/Josef FROMMELT

note: adopted 1850, revised 1963; uses the tune of "God Save the King"

More about the government of Liechtenstein

Constitution
Date of Independence	23 January 1719 (Principality of Liechtenstein established); 12 July 1806 (independence from the Holy Roman Empire); 24 August 1866 (independence from the German Confederation)
National holiday	National Day, 15 August (1940); note - a National Day was originally established in 1940 to combine celebrations for the Feast of the Assumption (15 August) with those honoring the birthday of former Prince FRANZ JOSEF II (1906-1989) whose birth fell on 16 August; after the prince's death, National Day became the official national holiday by law in 1990
Legal system	civil law system influenced by Swiss, Austrian, and German law
International law organization participation	accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
History	Previous 1862; latest adopted 5 October 1921
Amendments	Proposed by Parliament, by the reigning prince (in the form of "Government" proposals), by petition of at least 1,500 qualified voters, or by at least four communes; passage requires unanimous approval of Parliament members in one sitting or three-quarters majority vote in two successive sittings; referendum required only if petitioned by at least 1,500 voters or by at least four communes; passage by referendum requires absolute majority of votes cast; amended many times, last in 2023
Citizenship
Citizenship by birth	no
Citizenship by descent only	the father must be a citizen of Liechtenstein; in the case of a child born out of wedlock, the mother must be a citizen
Dual citizenship recognized	no
Residency requirement for naturalization	5 years
Executive Branch
Chief of state	Prince HANS-ADAM II (since 13 November 1989, assumed executive powers on 26 August 1984)
Head of government	Prime Minister Daniel RISCH (since 25 March 2021)
Cabinet	Cabinet elected by the Parliament, confirmed by the monarch
Elections/appointments	the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party in Parliament usually appointed the head of government by the monarch, and the leader of the largest minority party in Parliament usually appointed the deputy head of government by the monarch if there is a coalition government
Legislative branch
Description	Unicameral Parliament or Landtag (25 seats; members directly elected in 2 multi-seat constituencies by open-list proportional representation vote to serve 4-year terms)
Elections	Last held on 7 February 2021 (next to be held on 7 February 2025)
Election results	Percent of vote by party - FBP 40%, VU 40%, FL 12%, DpL 8%; seats by party - FBP 10, VU 10, FL 3, DpL 2; composition - men 18, women 7, percentage women 28%
Judicial branch
Highest court(s)	Supreme Court or Supreme Court or Fürstlicher Oberster Gerichtshof (consists of 5 judges and 5 substitutes); Constitutional Court or Staatsgerichtshof (consists of 5 judges, and 5 alternates)
Judge selection and term of office	Judges of both courts elected by the Landtag and appointed by the monarch; Supreme Court judges serve 4-year renewable terms; Constitutional Court judges appointed for renewable 5-year terms
Subordinate courts	Court of Appeal (second instance), Regional Court (first instance), Administrative Court, Tribunal Court, district courts
Diplomatic representation in the US
Chief of mission	Ambassador Georg SPARBER (since 1 December 2021)
Chancery	2900 K Street NW, Suite 602B, Washington, DC 20007
Telephone	[1] (202) 331-0590
FAX	[1] (202) 331-3221
Email address and website	[email protected] https://www.liechtensteinusa.org/
Diplomatic representation from the US
Embassy	The US does not have an embassy in Liechtenstein; the US Ambassador to Switzerland is accredited to Liechtenstein