Federal agency (Germany)

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Federal agencies in Germany are established to assist the country's executive branch on the federal level according to Article 86 of the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany (Grundgesetz). They are hierarchically organized on four levels:

According to Article 83 of the Grundgesetz, federal laws are generally enforced by the executive branch of the German states, except for laws referring to those explicit items that are enumerated in the constitution itself. Therefore, the establishment of middle-level and low-level federal agencies is limited to the authority explicitly granted by constitutional law, such as foreign policy, public finance, waterways and shipping, border control, intelligence assessment, national security and criminal investigation as well as items concerning the Bundeswehr or aviation and railway issues.

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