Relevant article in the EU VAT Directive
Article 9
1. “Taxable person” shall mean any person who, independently, carries out in any place any economic activity, whatever the purpose or results of that activity.
Any activity of producers, traders or persons supplying services, including mining and agricultural activities and activities of the professions, shall be regarded as “economic activity”. The exploitation of tangible or intangible property for the purposes of obtaining income therefrom on a continuing basis shall in particular be regarded as an economic activity.
ECJ Cases decided
- C-288/22 (Administration de l’Enregistrement, des Domaines and de la TVA) – Judgment – Member Board of Directors is not a taxable if not acting independently
- C-519/21 (DGRFP Cluj) – Right to deduct VAT even if status of taxable person can not be established
- C-512/21 (Aquila Part Prod Com) – Denial of input VAT due to fraud, without carrying out checks
- C-146/21 (DGRFP Bucureşti) – No application of Reverse-Charge before VAT registration
- C-697/20 (Dyrektor Izby Skarbowej w L.) – Agricultural spouses can be treated as separate VAT taxable persons
- C-846/19 (EQ) – Mandates in connection with custody and guardianship cases is an Economic activity – principle of the protection of legitimate expectations?
- C-812/19 (Danske Bank) – Head Office part of VAT group & its Branch are separate taxable persons
- C-655/19 (LN) – Judgment – Property acquisition under enforcement procedure and subsequent sale is not an economic activity
- C-424/19 (Cabinet de avocat UR) – Lawyers are taxable persons
- C-312/19 (Valstybinė mokesčių inspekcija) – Partnership is liable to pay VAT
- C‑420/18 (IO) – Member of Supervisory Board is not a VAT taxable person
- C-692/17 (Paulo Nascimento Consulting) – VAT on assignment of debt recognised in enforcement proceedings
- C-502/17 (C&D Foods Acquisition) – Deduction input VAT for Holdings; Sales of shares
- C-320/17 (Marle Participations) – Involvement of a holding in management of subsidiaries; Letting of building by holding company to subsidiary
- C-182/17 (Nagyszénás Településszolgáltatási Nonprofit Kft.) – Company of a municipality to which public tasks are assigned – Concept of “public body”
- C-28/16 (MVM) – Also VAT deduction limitation for ”active” company that holds participations
- C-576/15 (Маya Маrinova ET) – Taxable amount for the sale of goods can be based on factual information
- C-263/15 (Lajvér) – Operation of agricultural engineering works is an economic activity
- C-520/14 (Gemeente Borsele and Staatssecretaris van Financiën) – An authority providing transport services for schoolchildren is not a taxable person
- C-276/14 (Gmina Wroclaw) – Municipal budgetary entities cannot be regarded as taxable persons
- C-256/14 (Lisboagás GDL) – Taxable amount includes amount of taxes paid by the concessionaire of the gas distribution network to the municipalities for the use of the public domain
- C-174/14 (Saudaçor) – Company of the Azores Autonomous Region carries out economic activity
- C-499/13 (Macikowski) – Liability to pay VAT on the supply of immovable property in the context of a forced auction
- C-72/13 (Gmina Wrocław) – Transfer by a municipality of elements of its heritage
- C-7/13 (Skandia) – Judgment – Supply of services between head office and branch part of VAT group constitutes a taxable transaction
- C-62/12 (Kostov) – A natural person who is already a taxable person is also a ‘taxable person’ in respect of any other economic activity carried out occasionally
- C-324/11 (Tóth) – Right to deduct VAT if the business operator’s licence of the issuer of the invoice had been withdrawn
- C-285/11 (Bonik) – Suspicion of fraud no reason to refuse VAT deduction
- C-263/11 (Rēdlihs) – Owner of private forest can be taxable person for VAT purposes
- C-180/10 & C-181/11 – Ex-farmer should not be regarded as a VAT entrepreneur if he wishes to sell this land
- C-267/08 (SPÖ Landesorganisation Kärnten) – External propaganda activities of a political party is not an economic activity
- C-29/08 (SKF) – VAT deduction related to disposal of shares if there is a direct and immediate link with the overall economic activities
- C-355/06 (van der Steen) – An individual who is the sole shareholder and sole director of a private limited company is not a taxable person
- C-210/04 (FCE Bank) – A fixed establishment is not a legal entity distinct from the business itself
- C-60/90 ( Polysar Investments Netherlands) – A holding company only acquiring shares in other undertakings is not a taxable person and has no right to deduct VAT
- C-23/98 (Heerma) – Letting of tangible property is an independent activity
Pending ECJ Cases
- None
Join the Linkedin Group on ECJ VAT Cases, click HERE
For an overview of ECJ cases per article of the EU VAT Directive, click HERE
