Despite its location, its land is an enclave of the EU Customs Union of Germany, with German rules applying to its rail traffic and infrastructure, the latter owned and operated by the respective German entities so that, for example, the station's clocks bear the "DB" logo of Deutsche Bahn.

A Swiss railway commission desired a continuation of the line into Basel and contacted the Grand Duchy of Baden in 1842.

Since the two governments had not agreed about how to build the station in Basel yet, the passengers were transported across the border with hackney carriages.

Finally, a treaty between the government of Baden and the Swiss Confederation entered into force on July 27, 1852, and has remained so into the present.

[7] As of the December 2023 timetable change,[update] the following services stop at Basel Badischer Bahnhof:[8] Zürich – Berlin