Greenland Self-Government Act

Country / jurisdiction: Greenland · Year: 2009 · Status: In force · Level: National · Type: Voluntary

The Self-Government Act builds on the 1978 Greenland Home Rule Act which previously defined the relationship and fields of responsibility attributed to Greenland and Denmark, recognising that the people of Greenland is a people pursuant to international law with the right to self-determination. The Act lays out the relationship between Denmark and Greenland with a will to foster equality and mutual respect between both the Greenland Self-Government and the Danish Government.

The Self-Government Act therefore lays out the principles of the present relationship between Greenland and Denmark and provides a legal basis for Greenland to take over additional authority from Denmark including over matters exclusively related to Greenlandic domestic affairs and legislative and executive power in the area of natural resources. The Act fixes the annual subsidy from Denmark to the Greenland Self-Government at about DKK 3 440 million on 2009 prices and wage levels. A schedule is attached to the Act which determines the timeline by which various responsibilities should be transferred over from Denmark to Greenland.

In the area of mineral resources, the Act affirms that all revenues from mineral exploitation in Greenland’s subsoil should accrue to Greenland, unless annual revenue from mineral resources exceeds DKK 75 million in which case the Danish government’s annual subsidy to the Self-Government of Greenland will be reduced according to specific rules. If the Danish government’s annual subsidy to the self-government authorities is reduced to zero, negotiations on the future economic relationship between Denmark and Greenland will begin.

The Self-Government Act forms the basic framework upon which much of the Greenlandic legislation is based since 2009.

Official source: https://english.stm.dk/media/10522/gl-selvstyrelov-uk.pdf