Category: European

Universitat Bielefeld v Hauptzollamt Giessen: ECJ 10 Dec 1987

ECJ For the purpose of allowing the duty-free importation of a scientific apparatus, the equivalence of that apparatus and similar apparatus manufactured in the community must be appraised by reference to the situation obtaining when the order for the apparatus is placed and it is therefore wrong to compare an existing foreign apparatus with hypothetical versions of community apparatus. The competent authorities are nevertheless at liberty to verify whether the community apparatus existing when the order is placed can be adapted to the proposed research project within a period of time compatible with the third indent of article 3(3) of Regulation no 1798/75

Citations:

C-164/86, R-164/86, [1987] EUECJ R-164/86

Links:

Bailii

European

Updated: 22 May 2022; Ref: scu.134441

Apple and Pear Development Council v Commissioners of Customs and Excise: ECJ 8 Mar 1988

Consideration means ‘everything received in return for the supply of services or the provision of services’.

Judges:

Advocate General Slynn

Citations:

C-102/86, R-102/86, [1988] EUECJ R-102/86, [1988] STC 221

Links:

Bailii

Jurisdiction:

European

Cited by:

Cited – Nell Gwynn House Maintenance Fund v Commissioners of Customs and Excise HL 15-Dec-1998
Trustees who managed a group of apartments argued that they did not themselves provide staff services to the tenants, but rather arranged for the staff to provide services to them.
Held: The contract providing cleaning and other services, by a . .
Cited – Revenue and Customs v Debenhams Retail Plc CA 18-Jul-2005
The store introduced a system whereby when a customer paid by credit card, the charges made to them for card handling were expressed as a separate amount on the receipt. The store then said that VAT was payable only on the net amount allocated to . .
Cited – Airtours Holidays Transport Ltd v Revenue and Customs SC 11-May-2016
The court was asked whether the appellant, Airtours Holidays Transport Ltd (formerly MyTravel Group plc), was entitled to recover, by way of input tax VAT charged by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP in respect of services provided by PwC and paid for by . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

VAT

Updated: 22 May 2022; Ref: scu.134390

Samara v Commission: ECJ 17 Feb 1987

ECJ Once the court has delivered a judgment annulling the decision on the classification of an official, and the administration, in giving effect to that judgment, no longer enjoys any measure of discretion, proper compliance with the judgment demands that, in order to put the person concerned back in the position which should lawfully have been his, account be taken of the loss which he has incurred on account of the fact that he was restored to that position only after an appreciable lapse of time and that he could not have the use of the sums to which he was entitled on the dates on which they would normally have fallen due. To that end such a person should be awarded default interest at a flat rate of 8% per annum, running from the date on which each instalment became due until final settlement.

Citations:

C-21/86, [1987] ECR 795, [1987] EUECJ C-21/86

Links:

Bailii

Cited by:

Cited – Regina v Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries and Food ex parte Lower Burytown Farms Limited and National Farmers Union and others Admn 1-Aug-1995
The applicants were farmers who had claimed payments under the set-aside scheme. Payment was refused on the basis that they had claimed too much, but payment was ordered to be made after a ruling in Europe. They now sought judicial review of a . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

European

Updated: 22 May 2022; Ref: scu.134326

Commission v United Kingdom: ECJ 21 Jun 1988

Europa An action by the Commission pursuant to Article 169 of the Treaty against a Member State for failure to fulfil its obligations, the bringing of which is a matter for the Commission in its entire discretion, is objective in nature. In the context of the balance of powers between the institutions laid down in the Treaty, it is not for the Court to consider what objectives are pursued in such an action. Its role is to decide whether or not the Member State in question has failed to fulfil its obligations as alleged.
The identification of ‘cleary defined social reasons’ for which certain reduced rates and exemptions from value-added tax may be retained on a transitional basis pursuant to the last indent of Article 17 of the Second Directive and Article 28 (2) of the Sixth Directive is in principle a matter of political choice for the Member States and can be the subject-matter of supervision at the Community level only in so far as, by distorting that concept, it leads to measures which because of their effects and their true objectives lie outside its scope. Since, under the general scheme of value-added tax, the final consumer is the person who acquires goods or services for personal use, as opposed to an economic activity, and thus bears the tax, the second condition laid down in those provisions for the retention of certain reduced rates and exemptions, that is to say that they must be ‘for the benefit of the final consumer’ must in the light of the social purpose of Article 17 be understood as meaning that the beneficiary must not use exempted goods or services in the course of an economic activity. The provision of goods or services at a stage higher in the production or distribution chain which is nevertheless sufficiently close to the consumer to be of advantage to him must also be considered to be for the benefit of the final consumer as so defined.
‘With regard to buildings intended for housing, the Commission’s arguments cannot be upheld. The measures adopted by the United Kingdom to implement its social policy in housing matters, that is to say, facilitating home ownership for the whole population, fall within the purview of ‘social reasons’ for the purposes of the last indent of article 17 of the Second Directive.’

Judges:

Advocate General Darmon

Citations:

C-416/85, [1990] 2 QB 130, [1988] EUECJ C-416/85, [1988] STC 456

Links:

Bailii

Cited by:

Cited – Her Majesty’s Commissioners of Customs and Excise v Zielinski Baker and Partners Limited HL 26-Feb-2004
The commissioners sought to charge to VAT charges for works which had been carried out to a building within the curtilage of a listed building. The taxpayer sought zero-rating.
Held: The outbuilding to which alterations were made must have . .
Cited – Revenue and Customs v Jacobs CA 22-Jul-2005
The taxpayer had converted a former residentional boarding school into a substantial private residence. He had sought to claim over andpound;300,000 VAT inputs. The Commissioners appealed the finding that he was so entitled.
Held: ‘works . .
Cited – Mason v Boscawen ChD 18-Dec-2008
The landlord had opted to charge VAT on part of the rent. The tenant fell into arrears and now challenged a notice to quit which included the VAT. The court was asked what constituted ‘rent’ for the purposes of a demand for rent founding a notice to . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

European, VAT

Updated: 22 May 2022; Ref: scu.134303

Basset v Sacem (Rec 1987,P 1747) (Judgment): ECJ 9 Apr 1987

ECJ Free Movement Of Goods – Articles 30 and 36 of the EEC treaty, on a true construction, do not preclude the application of national legislation allowing a national copyright-management society to charge a royalty called a ‘supplementary mechanical reproduction fee’, in addition to a performance royalty, on the public performance of sound recordings, even where such a supplementary fee is not provided for in the member state where those sound recordings were lawfully placed on the market. The prohibitions laid down in article 86 of the eec treaty, properly construed, do not apply to the conduct of a national copyright-management society simply because it charges a royalty called a ‘supplementary mechanical reproduction fee’, in addition to a performance royalty, on the public performance of sound recordings, even where such a supplementary fee is not provided for in the member state where those sound recordings were lawfully placed on the market.

Citations:

C-402/85, R-402/85, [1987] EUECJ R-402/85

Links:

Bailii

European

Updated: 22 May 2022; Ref: scu.134296