Maastricht Principles on Extraterritorial Obligations of States in the area of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

The Maastricht Principles on Extraterritorial Obligations of States in the area of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, adopted on 28 September 2011 by a group of international law and human rights experts, clarify the obligations of States to respect, protect, and fulfil economic, social, and cultural rights beyond their own borders. The document establishes that States are responsible for acts or omissions that have foreseeable effects on human rights extraterritorially and outlines the duties of States to regulate non-State actors, such as corporations, and to cooperate internationally to create an enabling environment for the universal realization of these rights.

• Extraterritorial obligations are defined as those relating to a State's acts or omissions, whether within or beyond its territory, that affect human rights enjoyment outside its borders, as well as global obligations to take joint or separate action to realize human rights universally.
• A State's jurisdiction and subsequent obligations to respect, protect, and fulfil economic, social, and cultural rights apply in situations where it exercises authority or effective control, where its acts or omissions have foreseeable effects, or where it can exercise decisive influence to realize these rights extraterritorially.
• States have a specific obligation to avoid causing harm and must conduct public impact assessments of their laws, policies, and practices to prevent the nullification or impairment of extraterritorial economic, social, and cultural rights.
• The obligation to protect requires States to regulate non-State actors, including transnational corporations, to ensure they do not impair human rights. This duty applies if the harm originates on the State's territory, the actor has the State's nationality, the business is registered or domiciled there, or there is a reasonable link between the State and the conduct.
• To fulfil extraterritorial obligations, States must create an international enabling environment through the review of bilateral and multilateral agreements and the coordination of resources commensurate with their economic and technical capacities.
• States must refrain from using sanctions, such as embargoes, that impair economic, social, and cultural rights, and are strictly prohibited from applying such measures to goods and services essential for meeting core obligations.
• Accountability for extraterritorial violations requires States to provide prompt, accessible, and effective remedies, including judicial and non-judicial options. This includes the right to truth and adequate reparation, such as restitution and compensation, regardless of where the harm occurred.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (2011). Maastricht Principles on Extraterritorial Obligations of States in the area of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Maastricht_ETO_Principles_21Oct11.pdf

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. Maastricht Principles on Extraterritorial Obligations of States in the area of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. 2011. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Maastricht_ETO_Principles_21Oct11.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=Maastricht Principles on Extraterritorial Obligations of States in the area of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights |date=28 September 2011 |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Maastricht_ETO_Principles_21Oct11.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforinternationalenvironmentallaw2011maastricht, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{Maastricht Principles on Extraterritorial Obligations of States in the area of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2011}, month = sep, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Maastricht_ETO_Principles_21Oct11.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }