Federal Police (Germany)

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The Federal Police (Bundespolizei or BPOL) is the national and principal federal law enforcement agency of the German Federal Government, being subordinate to the Federal Ministry of the Interior and Community (Bundesministerium des Innern und für Heimat (BMI)). The Federal Police is primarily responsible for border protection and railroad and aviation/air security. In addition, the agency is responsible, among other tasks, for the protection of federal constitutional bodies. It provides the federal alert police and GSG 9 special police unit, which can also be used to support the federated states of Germany.^[3] Ordinary police forces, meanwhile, are under the administration of the individual German states (Bundesländer) and are known as the Landespolizei. In addition to the Federal Police, the Federal Criminal Police Office and the German Parliament Police exist as further police authorities at the federal level.

The Bundespolizei was named Bundesgrenzschutz (BGS) ("Federal Border Protection") until 2005, which at its foundation in 1951 had a more restricted role. The then BGS incorporated the former West German Railway Police (Bahnpolizei) (in 1992), formerly an independent force, and the East German Transportpolizei (in 1990). Prior to 1994, BGS members also had military combatant status due to their historical foundation and border patrol role in West Germany. In July 2005 the law renaming the BGS as the BPOL was enacted.