Categories: European Court of Justice (45 found)

1. 17.06.2022

   German withholding tax refund requirements for non-resident ...

   The German rules on the procedure and documentation requirements for withholding tax refunds to non-resident portfolio shareholders are not compatible with the EU principles on the free movement of capital, as the European Court of Justice (ECJ) said in a most recent decision.

   Categories: European Court of Justice

   Keywords: portfolio dividend, refund claim, docume ...
2. 27.05.2022

   ECJ: Refusal to allow the utilization of foreign branch fina ...

   Following the request for a preliminary ruling from the German Supreme Tax Court, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) is called to decide whether a German parent company has the right to deduct from its taxable income losses incurred by its UK branch, which had ceased activity and thus could no longer utilize its accumulated tax losses in the UK. In his Opinion, the Advocate General has suggested that the German rules denying the import of losses of foreign branches are not contrary to the EU principles of freedom of establishment.

   Categories: European Court of Justice

   Keywords: final loss, foreign branch losses, head ...
3. 23.05.2022

   ECJ and VAT: No fixed establishment through subsidiary provi ...

   In a recent judgment the European Court of Justice (ECJ) held that a German company does not maintain a fixed establishment through its Romanian subsidiary where the latter actively promoted the products of the German company in Romania based on marketing, advertising and regulatory strategies established and developed by the German parent.

   Categories: European Court of Justice

   Keywords: permanent establishment, marketing subsi ...
4. 09.05.2022

   ECJ: VAT treatment of city-card for tourists as multi-purpos ...

   In a Swedish reference for a preliminary ruling, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) had a first opportunity to comment on the distinction and VAT treatment of single-purpose vouchers and multi-purpose vouchers in Article 30a of the VAT Directive. According to the ECJ, the city-card of Stockholm can be viewed as a multi-purpose voucher as mentioned in Article 30a (3) VAT Directive, provided it meets the criteria for a voucher as set in Article 30(1) which is finally to be confirmed by the referring court.

   Categories: European Court of Justice

   Keywords: VAT, voucher, multiple-purpose voucher
5. 31.03.2022

   ECJ: Withholding tax on notional interest in case of interes ...

   In a Bulgarian case the European Court of Justice (ECJ) held that EU law does not preclude national legislation imposing withholding tax on notional market-based interest (mandated under local tax anti-avoidance rules). Such withholding tax cannot be exempt under the regimes of the IRD (EU Interest - Royalty Directive 2003/49/EC) and the PSD (EU Parent-Subsidiary Directive 2011/96/EU) as there have been no actual payments of interest.

   Categories: European Court of Justice

   Keywords: notional tax, interest-free loan, notion ...
6. 25.03.2022

   Documentation requirements for refund of withholding tax on ...

   In his Opinion of 20 January 2022, the Advocate General (AG) suggests to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) that Germany’s requirements for withholding tax claims filed by non-resident corporate taxpayers with seat or place of management in the EU or EEA are too strict in two respects and thus in violation of Article 63 TFEU on the free movement of capital.

   Categories: European Court of Justice

   Keywords: portfolio dividend, documentation requir ...
7. 22.03.2022

   Portuguese dividend withholding tax for foreign UCITS in bre ...

   Does the free movement of capital require a Member State to tax non-resident and resident investment vehicles according to the same tax system? This is the question raised in the request for a preliminary ruling submitted to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) by the Portuguese tax court (Tax Arbitration Tribunal). Contrary to the Opinion of the Advocate General the ECJ decided that the withholding tax on dividends paid to non-resident Undertakings for Collective Investments in Transferable Securities (UCITS) is in violation with current EU Law.

   Categories: European Court of Justice

   Keywords: UCITS, portuguese dividend withholding t ...
8. 15.02.2022

   ECJ: Time of input Vat deduction in case option to charge VA ...

   In a most recent ruling, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) held that, for situations where the output VAT is calculated at the time the remuneration is received rather when the service was completed, the German VAT provision that the right to deduct input VAT must be exercised upon completion of the supply or service is not in line with current EU law, in particular Articles 167 and 66 (1) of Council Directive 2006/112/EC.

   Categories: European Court of Justice

   Keywords: input VAT deduction, remittance basis, r ...
9. 08.02.2022

   Rules for limited inheritance tax liability only in part com ...

   According to the decision of the European Court of Justice (ECJ), the different inheritance tax allowances in the case of unlimited and limited tax liability is in line with EU law, specifically it is not in breach of the free movement of capital. However, the refusal of the German tax office to deduct liabilities linked to the inheritance in the case of limited tax liability is not compatible with EU law. 

   Categories: European Court of Justice

   Keywords: limited inheritance tax liability, inher ...
10. 28.01.2022

    German VAT group regime tested before the ECJ

    Pending before the ECJ are currently two questions of relevance regarding the German regulation of consolidated tax groups for VAT purposes (VAT group). In her Opinion on both cases the Advocate General takes the view that the sole taxable person is, in principle, the VAT group itself and not (as under German VAT law) the controlling member of the group.

    Categories: European Court of Justice

    Keywords: VAT group, taxable person, controlling m ...
11. 06.01.2022

    Deduction of input VAT in cases of allegedly useless adverti ...

    In an interesting Hungarian case, albeit with a somewhat predictable outcome, the ECJ was called to decide on the deduction of input VAT in cases where the value of the service provided is ostensibly disproportionate to the benefit which the service generates for the recipient in matters of sales revenue or increase in sales revenue. The ECJ held that, in general,  such circumstances have no effect on the right to deduct input tax.

    Categories: European Court of Justice

    Keywords: input tax deduction, useless advertising ...
12. 17.09.2021

    Belgian tax exemptions granted to multinational companies as ...

    In a most recent judgment, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) confirmed the findings of the EU Commission in a Belgian case, namely that local tax exemptions granted by way of tax rulings to multinational companies constitutes selective and thus illicit State Aid. With this, the ECJ sets aside the first-instance decision of the European General Court and refers the case back for further review on other aspects of the case.

    Categories: European Court of Justice

    Keywords: tax rulings, illicit state aid, Belgian ...
13. 08.07.2021

    VAT: No permanent establishment in case of property rental

    The European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that the reverse charge is applicable to the leasing of real property located in Austria because the Jersey based lessor, in lieu of own local staff to perform services relating to the letting, does not have a permanent establishment (fixed place of business) in Austria.

    Categories: European Court of Justice

    Keywords: reverse charge, permanent establishment, ...
14. 04.06.2021

    ECJ: Participation in VAT fraud and refusal of input VAT ded ...

    The right to deduct input VAT is denied not only if the taxable person himself commits an evasion, but also if he is aware that he participated with his acquisition in a tax evasion. In the latter case the refusal of the input tax deduction is a consequence of the failure to comply with the responsibilities in suspect cases. The taxable person who knew or should have known that he or she was participating in a fraudulent transaction assists the perpetrators of that fraud and becomes an accomplice thereto. The European Court of Justice (ECJ) confirms its previous case law on this issue.

    Categories: European Court of Justice

    Keywords: Tax evasion, VAT fraud
15. 16.04.2021

    VAT group: ECJ defines eligibility of partnerships as contro ...

    The ECI held that it is from the outset not compatible with EU-Law if the possibility for a partnership to form a VAT group - in addition to the controlling company – is limited to those partners in the partnership whose business is financially integrated into that of the parent. Such a restriction can only be justified by a specific need to prevent abuse.

    Categories: European Court of Justice

    Keywords: VAT group, partnership, controlled compa ...
16. 26.02.2021

    Swedish interest deduction rule incompatible with EU law

    In a recent judgement the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has clarified that it is contrary to the freedom of establishment to deny the deduction of interest costs on a loan from a normally taxed group company, if this would not have happened had the loan been granted from a normally taxed Swedish group company instead.

    Categories: European Court of Justice

    Keywords: interest deduction, cross-border loan
17. 22.12.2020

    ECJ: Request for VAT refund valid even in absence of serial ...

    Following on a request for a preliminary ruling brought by the Supreme Tax Court, the European Court of Justice held that the application form for a VAT refund does not necessarily have to show a serial invoice number. It is sufficient to indicate another number which can be used to identify the invoice and thus the item or service in question.

    Categories: European Court of Justice

    Keywords: serial number, application for VAT refun ...
18. 21.12.2020

    No VAT exemption for heat supplies provided by homeowners' a ...

    The European Court of Justice (ECJ) held that the supply of heat by a homeowners' association to its members, the residential property owners, is subject to VAT. Accordingly, the proportionate input VAT allocable to the acquisition and operation costs of the heat generating power plant will be deductible. The case was referred to the ECJ by the Lower Tax Court of Baden-Wuerttemberg.

    Categories: European Court of Justice

    Keywords: VAT Exemption, heat supplies, power plan ...
19. 13.12.2020

    ECJ: No automatic VAT-exemption for sports related services ...

    The ECJ held that Article 132(1)(m) of Council Directive 2006/112/EC exempting ‘the supply of certain services closely linked to the practice of sport or physical education’ is not being of direct effect and cannot be directly invoked before the national (local) courts. It is for the national court to determine in detail what kind of services provided by sports clubs are exempt from VAT.

    Categories: European Court of Justice

    Keywords: VAT Exemption, sports services, sports c ...
20. 29.11.2020

    ECJ: Complaint for rejection of VAT refund applications by f ...

    The European Court of Justice (ECJ) upheld an action for breach of contract brought by the EU Commission against Germany in two of three claims. Germany had violated EU law insofar as it systematically refuses to request the information missing in an application for a VAT refund of foreign taxpayers and instead immediately refuses the refund applications in such cases if such information can be provided only after the 30 September deadline.

    Categories: European Court of Justice

    Keywords: foreign business, application for VAT re ...
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