(As of: 10.05.2025)
§ 1 Name and Registered Office
The association is named “grenzenlos e.V. – Association of International Volunteers.”
Its registered office is in Cologne and it is entered in the Register of Associations. The Executive Board may designate an administrative office independent of the registered office.
§ 2 Purpose of the Association, Non-Profit Status
(1) Tax-Privileged Purposes
The association exclusively and directly pursues charitable and non-profit purposes within the meaning of the section “tax-privileged purposes” of the German Fiscal Code.
(2) Specific Objectives
The association serves as a forum for all persons who have completed, are currently undertaking, or have been selected or prepared for an international or national voluntary service.
The primary purpose of the association is to promote international understanding, particularly among young people. It aims to foster and deepen understanding of and interest in different cultures.
A further purpose is to improve the legal framework conditions for international and national voluntary services in general.
Additionally, the association aims to connect current and former volunteers, enabling them to contribute their experiences to their local communities or to qualify them through events to continue civic engagement following their voluntary service.
Furthermore, the association is also committed to expanding voluntary service opportunities in Germany for people from various countries and to strengthening and further developing the framework conditions for civic engagement of former volunteers.
The association administers a Community Fund, which provides simple and unbureaucratic financial support to former South-North volunteers upon their return to their home countries as well as to future volunteers. The Fund supports former South-North volunteers in engaging in civic activities or pursuing further civic training after their voluntary service.
Through the Community Fund and its funding instruments, the association promotes:
- international understanding, tolerance in all areas of culture, and the idea of international cooperation;
- education, public and vocational training, including student aid;
- development cooperation;
- youth welfare;
- civic engagement for charitable, benevolent, and religious purposes.
(3) Measures
The statutory purposes are achieved through the following measures:
- Promotion of international understanding and tolerance in all areas of culture
a. through local and global multi-perspective educational work and the promotion of democracy;
b. through the preparation, support, and follow-up of international and national voluntary services in the form of community work;
c. through the establishment of a Community Fund that actively contributes to global justice by supporting former and future South-North volunteers. - Promotion of education, public and vocational training, including student assistance
a. through the awarding of scholarships within the framework of the Community Fund for individual further education, such as professional qualifications for former South-North volunteers and through scholarships for German language courses for future volunteers, improving their chances of participation in voluntary service and obtaining visas to enter Germany. - Promotion of development cooperation
a. through projects funded by the Community Fund and initiated by former volunteers on development policy topics, such as campaigns and educational work on fair supply chains or international digital knowledge exchange to promote democracy. - Promotion of youth welfare
a. through projects funded by the Community Fund led by young people engaged in areas like global justice, social participation, and intercultural understanding, such as workshops or peer-to-peer mentoring programs led by former volunteers. - Promotion of civic engagement for charitable, philanthropic, and religious causes
a. through supporting projects of former volunteers engaged in social responsibility and volunteer work, such as founding initiatives to support disadvantaged groups or organizing solidarity campaigns. - To further the association’s purpose, the association may sell merchandise such as T-shirts and use the proceeds for purposes in accordance with the bylaws.
§ 3 Membership
Membership is open to individuals and legal entities. Admission is granted by the Executive Board upon written application, which may be rejected without stating reasons.
There are four types of membership:
Ordinary Membership:
Natural persons and legal entities in the form of volunteer associations that do not themselves send volunteers may be admitted. Ordinary members have the right to vote and stand for election at the General Assembly.
Passive Membership:
Legal entities may be admitted. They have neither the right to vote nor the right to stand for election at the General Assembly.
Community Membership:
Anyone who wishes to support the association’s work for the Alumni Community and the Community Fund through a monetary, in-kind, or other service-related contribution may be admitted as a Community Member. The community membership fee enables the association to permanently establish and further develop the community and to facilitate mutual support among community members, including through the Community Fund. Community members have neither the right to vote nor the right to stand for election.
Honorary Membership:
A member may be nominated by the Executive Board for honorary membership on the basis of special merits. The General Assembly decides on this status by a simple majority. The same procedure applies to honorary board members, although this status is reserved exclusively for (former) board members. Honorary board members have the right to attend Board meetings. Should the Board determine that it is unable to act, honorary board members may be asked by the Board to coordinate the provisional management of the association. Honorary members and honorary board members have no privileges and pay the same membership fee as other members.
All members have the right to attend the General Assembly. The type of membership is determined by the Board in consultation with the new member.Die Mitgliedschaft kann von Einzelpersonen und juristischen Personen erworben werden. Die Aufnahme erfolgt durch den Vorstand aufgrund eines schriftlichen Antrages. Der Antrag kann vom Vorstand ohne Angabe von Gründen abgelehnt werden. Es gibt vier verschiedene Arten der Mitgliedschaft:
§ 4 Resignation and Expulsion
Membership ends:
- upon death or loss of legal capacity (natural persons) or dissolution (legal entities);
- upon resignation declared in writing with two months’ notice to the Executive Board to the end of a calendar year;
- by removal from the membership list if contributions are overdue for 12 months or more. Removal is ordered by the Board;
- by expulsion due to conduct harmful to the association, decided by the Executive Board
§ 5 Membership Fees
The amount of membership fees is proposed by the Executive Board and determined by the General Assembly. Fees are payable in advance in the fourth quarter/at the end of the calendar year.
Different membership fees may be established for the respective membership categories. Community membership fees are determined by the Community Fund management or, if not appointed, by the Executive Board.
Reductions or waivers of membership fees may be granted by the Executive Board in justified cases.
§ 6 Governing Bodies of the Association
The governing bodies of the association are:
- the Executive Board;
- the General Assembly;
- an optional general management;
- an optional Community Fund management.
The Executive Board may appoint an Advisory Board to assist the Executive Board or to carry out various tasks..
§ 7 Executive Board
The Executive Board consists of at least four and at most eight persons. All members of the Executive Board must be members of the association. They are elected by the General Assembly for a term of two years; however, they shall remain in office after the expiration of their term until a new Executive Board has been elected. Re-election is permitted. If a member of the Executive Board resigns during their term of office, the full Executive Board shall appoint a replacement member to serve until the next General Assembly.
The association may be represented in and out of court within the meaning of Section 26 of the German Civil Code (BGB) jointly by any two members of the Executive Board. The activities of the Executive Board in their function are carried out on a purely honorary (voluntary) basis. Members of the Executive Board may only claim reimbursement for actual expenses that are necessary in the course of their duties. The Executive Board is entitled to appoint a managing director as a special representative in accordance with Section 30 BGB for the conduct of the ongoing administration.
In this case, the managing director must be entered into the register of associations by the Executive Board. The Executive Board adopts its resolutions in meetings or by online agreements, which are convened by a member of the Executive Board or the management upon prior arrangement. The Executive Board constitutes a quorum if at least half of its members are present. All resolutions of the Executive Board are adopted by a simple majority. The Executive Board may adopt its own rules of procedure.Der Vorstand besteht aus mindestens vier, maximal acht Personen. Alle Vorstandsmitglieder müssen Mitglieder des Vereins sein. Sie werden von der Mitgliederversammlung auf die Dauer von zwei Jahren gewählt, bleiben jedoch nach Ablauf der Amtszeit bis zur Neuwahl eines Vorstandes im Amt. Wiederwahl ist zulässig. Tritt ein Vorstandsmitglied während der Amtszeit zurück, so bestimmt der Gesamtvorstand ein Ersatzvorstandsmitglied bis zur
nächsten Mitgliederversammlung.
§ 8 General Assembly
The ordinary General Assembly shall take place once per calendar year. In special cases, the General Assembly may be convened outside this period; this must be done if the interests of the association require it or if one third of the members request it in writing from the Executive Board, stating the reasons.
The General Assembly is convened by the Executive Board with a notice period of one month, either by letter or email. The invitation shall be deemed received if it has been sent to the last address provided by the member to the association.
Under special circumstances, the Executive Board may approve or convene an online General Assembly. An online General Assembly is not considered the preferred format of a General Assembly, but should only be regarded as a possible alternative under appropriate circumstances. The Executive Board must justify the convening of an online General Assembly in writing in the invitation.
§ 9 Conduct of the General Assembly
The General Assembly shall be chaired by a member of the Executive Board. Urgent motions may only be dealt with at the General Assembly if the assembly resolves, by a three-quarters majority of the members present, to include such urgent motions as additional items on the agenda.
Resolutions are passed by a majority of the valid votes cast; abstentions shall not be taken into account. The method of voting shall be determined by the chair of the meeting. Motions to amend the agenda must be submitted in writing to the Executive Board at least two weeks prior to the General Assembly.
Each member present and entitled to vote may be assigned, in advance, a maximum of one vote from another member entitled to vote who is unable to attend the assembly. A transferred vote must be registered with the chair of the meeting prior to the opening of the General Assembly.
The transfer of a vote may be evidenced informally.
§ 10 Amendments to the Statutes
Any amendment to the statutes—including a change to the purpose of the association—requires a two-thirds majority of the members present.
§ 11 Resolutions
The resolutions of the General Assembly must be recorded in writing and kept in the association’s records. They must include the place and date of the meeting, the voting results, and the signatures of the chair of the meeting..
§ 12 Dissolution
The dissolution of the association shall be effected by a resolution of the General Assembly with a three-quarters majority of the members present. In the event of the dissolution of the association, or if its previous purpose ceases to apply, the assets of the association shall pass to Zugvögel – Grenzen überwinden e.V., Rhein-Maas-Str. 1, 52066 Aachen, which shall use them directly and exclusively for charitable purposes.
§ 13 Financial Year
The financial year is the calendar year.
§ 14 General Management
(1) The affairs of the association shall be managed by the Executive Board and, where necessary, by separately appointed managing directors. A managing director may also be a member of the Executive Board. A managing director shall be appointed for a maximum term of three years by resolution of the Executive Board, with no more than one dissenting vote. Reappointment is possible. Further details shall be set out in a contract between the Executive Board and the managing director(s).
The managing director(s) must submit a written report to the Executive Board at the end of each quarter on the course of business and the situation of the association.
The managing director(s) shall be involved in all activities and meetings of the Executive Board and may only be excluded in exceptional cases and by a separate resolution of the Executive Board.
Further details may be regulated by rules of procedure.
(2) General Management
The general management conducts the affairs of the association in accordance with the statutes, the resolutions of the General Assembly, and the instructions issued by the Executive Board, both generally and in individual cases. The management is entrusted, as a so-called special representative pursuant to Section 30 BGB, with the conduct of the ongoing business of the association and represents the association externally on behalf of the Executive Board.
(3) Management of the Community Fund
The management of the Community Fund shall be appointed by the Executive Board. It is responsible for the operational management of the Community Fund. Its duties include, in particular but not exclusively:
– Determining the level of contributions for community members,
– Fundraising and public relations for the fund,
– Organizing the application procedures for funding from the fund,
– Selecting funding recipients,
– Managing and disbursing the funds.
§ 15 Audit of Accounts
The General Assembly shall appoint an auditor who must not be a member of the Executive Board. The auditor shall examine the proper bookkeeping and financial reporting of the association. The auditor is appointed for a term of two years. A written audit report must be prepared and submitted to the Executive Board for its information. The Executive Board shall present the annual report and the audit report for the past financial year at the following General Assembly.
The General Assembly shall adopt the part of the rules of procedure that governs the handling of the association’s unrestricted financial resources.