The holdings of the Archives of the Akademie der Künste (Academy Archives) are part of Germany’s national cultural heritage. Since they fall under the Act on the Protection of Cultural Property (Kulturgutschutzgesetz - KGSG), enacted in summer 2016, they enjoy a special legal protection. As a result, should a loan be exported unlawfully abroad, the Federal Republic of Germany can assert a right of return against an EU Member State as well as a non-Member State. When archives are gifted to the Akademie der Künste, donors can decide whether they would rather have their cultural loans included in this category of protection or not.
In addition, the Archives are also responsible for holdings classified as cultural property of national significance. These can be researched in the Datenbank national wertvolles Kulturgut (Database of cultural property of national significance).