The HA VI dealt with the cross-border travel. It was formed in 1970 by merging the working groups "passport control and search" and "securing travel" and the customs defense (monitoring of customs staff). The HA VI had at the border crossings of the GDR, the travelers to control and handle. Therefore, the GDR passport inspectors were full-time employees of HA VI . For camouflage they wore uniforms of the border troops. First, in 1950, the border police had been commissioned with the border clearance.
In the HA VI , the data of the immigrants were subjected to an initial analysis in order to filter out politically-operationally interesting people. The border control also included the monitoring of the Western border inspection posts for the HA VI , as well as the Tegel and Tempelhof airports as well as the police and the border customs service in West Berlin. The responsibilities of the HA VI included the seamless monitoring of transit routes to and from West Berlin. With her ran notifications for preferential border clearance together.
In 1970 she took over from the
Department XX / 5 the task of preventing escape attempts and escape aids in the West, which in 1975/76 parts of the
Central Coordination Group passed (
Republic flight ). The HA VI monitored tourist facilities in the GDR , including the travel agencies and the Interhotels. Likewise, she controlled GDR citizens during their travels to socialist foreign countries in order to prevent contacts with Western citizens and escape attempts, if necessary .