Opinion of the Advocate General — ECLI:EU:C:2006:580
Date: 2006-09-14
Language of the case: Finnish
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Economic, social and territorial cohesion
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: Finland

Summary of the Judgment Economic and social cohesion – Structural assistance – Community financing – Eligibility for assistance of expenses incurred by national bodies (Council Regulation No 1260/1999, Arts 30(1) and 32(1); Commission Regulation No 1685/2000, Annex, Rule No 1, point 1.8) Point 1.8 of Rule No 1 in the Annex to Regulation No 1685/2000 laying down detailed rules for the implementation of Regulation No 1260/1999 as regards eligibility of expenditure of operations co-financed by the Structural Funds, as amended by Regulation No 448/2004, does not preclude a method of calculating overheads as eligible expenditure for the purposes of a project co-financed by the Structural Funds, on the sole ground that the method is based on a percentage or proportion, in particular, of wage costs or time worked. Without prejudice to national rules laying down stricter requirements, overheads paid out by final beneficiaries constitute eligible expenditure, under point 1.8 of that rule, where they meet three requirements, that is to say, they are based on real costs, that those costs relate to the implementation of the operation co-financed by the Structural Funds and that the said overheads are allocated pro rata to the operation, according to a duly justified fair and equitable method. That latter condition in particular is not designed to impose a single method of calculation, but leaves to the Member States a discretion in the calculation of eligible expenditure. That requirement is intended only to make the taking into account of overheads as eligible expenditure subject to such overheads being allocated ‘pro rata to the operation, according to a duly justified fair and equitable method’. Consequently, point 1.8 cannot be interpreted as precluding methods of calculating eligible overheads based on a percentage or proportion, in particular, of wage costs or time worked, provided however that the final beneficiary is in a position to show that those overheads are allocated to the project according to a method which complies with the criteria set forth in that provision. The allocation to the project concerned of overheads, such as, for example, wage costs, costs connected to real property or those relating to information technology, must, in the light of those criteria, take account of the relation between the number of persons working on carrying out the project, the number of working hours which they devote to it or the amount of wages paid on that account, and the average number of persons working for the organisation concerned, the average number of hours worked or the average amount of wages paid. (see paras 22, 25-28, operative part)