Map of Liechtenstein | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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Background: The Principality of Liechtenstein was established within the Holy Roman Empire in 1719. Occupied by both French and Russian troops during the Napoleonic Wars it became a sovereign state in 1806 and joined the Germanic Confederation in 1815. Liechtenstein became fully independent in 1866 when the Confederation dissolved. Until the end of World War I it was closely tied to Austria but the economic devastation caused by that conflict forced Liechtenstein to enter into a customs and monetary union with Switzerland. Since World War II (in which Liechtenstein remained neutral) the country's low taxes have spurred outstanding economic growth. In 2000 shortcomings in banking regulatory oversight resulted in concerns about the use of financial institutions for money laundering. However Liechtenstein implemented anti-money laundering legislation and a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty with the US that went into effect in 2003.


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Location: Central Europe between Austria and Switzerland

Geographic coordinates: 47 16 N 9 32 E

Map reference: Europe

Area
Total: 160 km²
Land: 160 km²
Water: 0 km²
Rank: 219
Comparative: about 0.9 times the size of Washington DC

Land boundaries
Total: 75 km
Border countries: (2) Austria 34 km; Switzerland 41 km

Coastline: 0 km (doubly landlocked)

Maritime claims: none (landlocked)

Climate: continental; cold cloudy winters with frequent snow or rain; cool to moderately warm cloudy humid summers

Terrain: mostly mountainous (Alps) with Rhine Valley in western third

Elevation
Mean elevation: NA
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Ruggeller Riet 430 m: highest point: Vorder-Grauspitz 2,599 m

Natural resources: hydroelectric potential arable land

Land use
Agricultural land: 37.6%
Forest: 43.1%
Other: 19.3%

Irrigated land: 0 km² (2012)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: avalanches landslides

Geography
Note: along with Uzbekistan one of only two doubly landlocked countries in the world; variety of microclimatic variations based on elevation


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Population
Distribution: most of the population is found in the western half of the country along the Rhine River: 38,244 (July 2017 est.)
Rank: 213
Growth rate: 0.8% (2017 est.)
Growth rate rank: 133
Below poverty line: NA%

Nationality
Noun: Liechtensteiner
Adjective: Liechtenstein

Ethnic groups: Liechtensteiner 66% other 34% (2013 est.)

Languages: German 94.5% (official) (Alemannic is the main dialect) Italian 1.1% other 4.3% (2010 est.)

Religions: Roman Catholic (official) 75.9% Protestant Reformed 6.5% Muslim 5.4% Lutheran 1.3% other 2.9% none 5.4% unspecified 2.6% (2010 est.)

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 15.26%
15-24 years: 11.65%
25-54 years: 41.64%
55-64 years: 14.03%
65 years and over: 17.41% (2017 est.)

Dependency ratios

Median age
Total: 43.2 years
Male: 41.7 years
Female: 44.5 years
Rank: 19

Population growth rate: 0.8% (2017 est.)
Rank: 133

Birth rate: 10.4 births/1000 population (2017 est.)
Rank: 188

Death rate: 7.4 deaths/1000 population (2017 est.)
Rank: 116

Net migration rate: 5 migrant(s)/1000 population (2017 est.)
Rank: 25

Population distribution: most of the population is found in the western half of the country along the Rhine River

Urbanization
Urban population: 14.3% of total population
Rate of urbanization: 0.79% annual rate of change

Major urban areas
Population: VADUZ (capital) 5,000 (2014)

Environment
Current issues: some air pollution generated locally some transfered from surrounding countries
International agreements party to: Air Pollution Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants Air Pollution-Sulfur 85 Air Pollution-Sulfur 94 Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds Biodiversity Climate Change Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol Desertification Endangered Species Hazardous Wastes Ozone Layer Protection Wetlands
International agreements signed but not ratified: Law of the Sea

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.26 male/female
0-14 years: 1.17 male/female
15-24 years: 0.99 male/female
25-54 years: 1 male/female
55-64 years: 0.95 male/female
65 years and over: 0.84 male/female
Total population: 0.99 male/female

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate
Total: 4.2 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 4.5 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 3.9 deaths/1000 live births
Rank: 190

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 81.9 years
Male: 79.7 years
Female: 84.7 years
Rank: 19

Total fertility rate: 1.69 children born/woman (2017 est.)
Rank: 174

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: NA
People living with hivaids: NA
Deaths: NA

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures: 2.6% of GDP (2011)
Rank: 166

Literacy

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 15 years
Male: 16 years
Female: 13 years

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: Principality of Liechtenstein
Conventional short form: Liechtenstein
Local long form: Fuerstentum Liechtenstein
Local short form: Liechtenstein
Etymology: named after the Liechtenstein dynasty that purchased and united the counties of Schellenburg and Vaduz and that was allowed by the Holy Roman Emperor in 1719 to rename the new property after their family; the name in German means 'light stone'

Government type: constitutional monarchy

Capital
Name: Vaduz
Geographic coordinates: 47 08 N 9 31 E
Time difference: UTC+1
Daylight saving time: +1hr begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

Administrative divisions: 11 communes (Gemeinden singular - Gemeinde); Balzers Eschen Gamprin Mauren Planken Ruggell Schaan Schellenberg Triesen Triesenberg Vaduz

Dependent areas

Independence: 23 January 1719 (Principality of Liechtenstein established); 12 July 1806 (independence from the Holy Roman Empire); 24 August 1866 (independence from the German Confederation)

National holiday: National Day 15 August (1940); note - a National Day was originally established in 1940 to combine celebrations for the Feast of the Assumption (15 August) with those honoring the birthday of former Prince Franz Josef II (1906-1989) whose birth fell on 16 August; after the prince's death National Day became the official national holiday by law in 1990

Constitution
History: previous 1862; latest adopted 5 October 1921
Amendments: proposed by Parliament by the reigning prince by petition of at least 1500 qualified voters or by at least four communes; passage requires unanimous approval of Parliament members in one sitting or three-quarters majority vote in two successive sittings; referendum required only if petitioned by at least 1500 voters or by at least four communes; passage by referendum requires absolute majority of votes cast; amended several times last in 2011 (2016)

Legal system: civil law system influenced by Swiss Austrian and German law

International law organization participation: accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship
Citizenship by birth: no
Citizenship by descent only: the father must be a citizen of Liechtenstein; in the case of a child born out of wedlock the mother must be a citizen
Dual citizenship recognized: no
Residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: Prince HANS-ADAM II ; Heir Apparent Prince ALOIS son of the monarch (born 11 June 1968); note - on 15 August 2004 HANS-ADAM II transferred the official duties of the ruling prince to ALOIS but HANS-ADAM II retains status of chief of state
Head of government: Prime Minister Adrian HASLER
Cabinet: Cabinet elected by the Parliament confirmed by the monarch
Electionsappointments: the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative elections the leader of the majority party in the Parliament usually appointed the head of government by the monarch and the leader of the largest minority party in the Landtag usually appointed the deputy head of government by the monarch if there is a coalition government

Legislative branch
Description: unicameral Parliament or Landtag
Elections: last held on 5 February 2017
Election results: percent of vote by party - FBP 35.2% VU 33.7% DU 18.4% FL 12.6%; seats by party - FBP 9 VU 8 DU 5 FL 3

Judicial branch
Highest court: Supreme Court or Oberster Gerichtshof ; Constitutional Court or Verfassungsgericht (consists of 5 judges and 5 alternates)
Judge selection and term of office: judges of both courts elected by the Landtag and appointed by the monarch; Supreme Court judges serve 4-year renewable terms; Constitutional Court judges appointed for renewable 5-year terms
Subordinate courts: Court of Appeal or Obergericht Court of Justice (first instance) Administrative Court county courts

Political parties and leaders:

International organization participation: CD CE EBRD EFTA IAEA ICCt ICRM IFRCS Interpol IOC IPU ITSO ITU ITUC (NGOs) OAS (observer) OPCW OSCE PCA Schengen Convention UN UNCTAD UPU WIPO WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Kurt JAEGER
In the us chancery: 2,900 K Street NW Suite 602B Washington DC 20,007
In the us telephone: [1] 331-0590
In the us FAX: [1] 331-3,221
From the us: the US does not have an embassy in Liechtenstein; the US Ambassador to Switzerland is accredited to Liechtenstein

Flag description: two equal horizontal bands of blue (top) and red with a gold crown on the hoist side of the blue band; the colors may derive from the blue and red livery design used in the principality's household in the 18th century; the prince's crown was introduced in 1937 to distinguish the flag from that of Haiti

National symbols: princely hat (crown); national colors: blue red

National anthem
Name: 'Oben am jungen Rhein'
Lyrics and music: Jakob Joseph JAUCH/Josef FROMMELT
Note: adopted 1850 revised 1963; uses the tune of 'God Save the Queen'

National heritage


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Economy overview:

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Rank: 173

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 146

Real gdp per capita:
Rank: 1

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 7%
Industry: 41%
Services: 52%

Agriculture products: wheat barley corn potatoes; livestock dairy products

Industries: electronics metal manufacturing dental products ceramics pharmaceuticals food products precision instruments tourism optical instruments

Industrial production growth rate: NA%

Labor force: 38,520 (2012)
Note: 51% of the labor force in Liechtenstein commute daily from Austria Switzerland and Germany
Rank: 200
By occupation agriculture: 0.8%
By occupation industry: 36.9%
By occupation services: 62.3%

Unemployment rate:
Rank: 19

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: NA%

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: NA%
Highest 10: NA%

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: $995.3 million
Expenditures: $890.4 million
Surplus or deficit: 1.6% of GDP (2012 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 14

Taxes and other revenues: 14.9% of GDP (2012 est.)
Rank: 191

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices:
Rank: 31

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares: $N/A

Current account balance

Exports:
Note: trade data exclude trade with Switzerland
Rank: 120
Commodities: small specialty machinery connectors for audio and video parts for motor vehicles dental products hardware prepared foodstuffs electronic equipment optical products

Imports:
Note: trade data exclude trade with Switzerland
Rank: 159
Commodities: agricultural products raw materials energy products machinery metal goods textiles foodstuffs motor vehicles

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $0 (2015 est.)
Note: public external debt only; private external debt unavailable
Rank: 206

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates:


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Electricity
Access electrification total population: 100%
Production: 68.43 million kWh (2015)
Production rank: 203
Consumption: 393.6 million kWh (2015)
Consumption rank: 175
Exports: 0 kWh (2015 est.) (2015 est.)
Exports rank: 160
Imports: 325.2 million kWh (2015)
Imports rank: 88

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 16,600
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 44
Fixed lines rank: 187
Mobile cellular total: 43,914
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 116
Mobile cellular rank: 204

Telephone system
General assessment: automatic telephone system
Domestic: fixed-line and mobile-cellular services widely available; combined telephone service subscribership exceeds 155 per 100 persons
International: country code - 423; linked to Swiss networks by cable and microwave radio relay

Broadcast media: relies on foreign terrestrial and satellite broadcasters for most broadcast media services; first Liechtenstein-based TV station established August 2008; Radio Liechtenstein operates multiple radio stations; a Swiss-based broadcaster operates several radio stations in Liechtenstein (2008)

Internet
Country code: .li
Users total: 37,214
Users percent of population: 98.1%
Users rank: 193

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix: HB (2016)

Airports

Heliports

Pipelines: gas 20 km (2013)

Railways
Total: 9 km
Standard gauge: 9 km 1.435-m gauge
Note: belongs to the Austrian Railway System connecting Austria and Switzerland
Rank: 136

Roadways
Total: 380 km
Paved: 380 km
Rank: 203

Waterways: 28 km (2010)
Rank: 105

Merchant marine

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international
Rank: li>a href='../rankorder/rankorderguide.html'>Guide to Country Comparisons: none

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs: has strengthened money laundering controls but money laundering remains a concern due to Liechtenstein's sophisticated offshore financial services sector