Why is membership compulsory?

Positively interpreted, "compulsory membership" simply means "a self-administrating economy": The CCIs are fulfilling many government tasks. They issue certificates of origin and carnets, hold vocational training examinations, swear in assessors, provide public administrations and courts with expert opinions, assist in the appointments of commercial judges, register eco-standards and fulfill legal information requirements.

The government assigned many of these tasks to the CCIs. If the government was to fulfill these tasks itself, the companies would not only experience a greater tax burden, they would also be without the co-determination and participation possibilities available now.

The CCIs' political function as a lobby group also needs a broad basis: The CCIs can only represent the interests of all persons involved in trade or business when all companies are members. If, however, the CCIs had to rely on recruiting members themselves, it would be easy for the financially strong companies to take the lead and thus threaten the CCIs' objectivity.