Judgment — ECLI:EU:C:2010:47
Date: 2010-01-28
Language of the case: German
Court formation: Third Chamber
Subject matter: Taxation;Value added tax
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: Germany

Summary of the Judgment 1. Tax provisions – Harmonisation of laws – Turnover taxes – Common system of value added tax – Exemptions provided for in the Sixth Directive – Exemption for tuition given privately by teachers and covering school or university education (Council Directive 77/388, Art. 13A(1)(j)) 2. Tax provisions – Harmonisation of laws – Turnover taxes – Common system of value added tax – Exemptions provided for in the Sixth Directive – Exemption for tuition given privately by teachers and covering school or university education (Council Directive 77/388, Art. 13A(1)(j)) 1. Article 13A(1)(j) of Sixth Council Directive 77/388 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to turnover taxes must be interpreted as meaning that teaching work which a graduate engineer performs at an education institute established as a private-law association for participants in advanced training courses – culminating in an examination – who already have at least a university or higher technical college qualification as an architect or an engineer or who have an equivalent education can constitute ‘tuition … covering school or university education’ within the meaning of that provision. Activities other than teaching in the strict sense can also constitute such tuition, provided that they are carried out, essentially, in the context of the transfer of knowledge and skills between a teacher and pupils or students and cover school or university education. It is for the referring court, if need be, to ascertain whether all the education activities concerned are ‘tuition’ covering ‘school or university education’ within the meaning of that provision. (see para. 38, operative part 1) 2. Article 13A(1)(j) of Sixth Council Directive 77/388 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to turnover taxes must be interpreted as meaning that an independent person who is a partner in a civil law partnership, who performs teaching work for continuing professional training courses offered by another body, cannot be regarded as having given tuition ‘privately’ within the meaning of that provision, since, it is that body – and not the teacher concerned – which provided training to the participants of the courses. That last fact, in itself, rules out the possibility that the teacher – and thus the civil partnership of which he is a partner – could be regarded as giving tuition ‘privately’ within the meaning of Article 13A(1)(j) of the Sixth Directive. In that regard, the mere fact of carrying out an economic activity ‘independently’ and in compliance with the other criteria set out in Article 4 of the Sixth Directive in order to be considered a taxable person for VAT purposes cannot, without more, lead to the conclusion that a teacher who is not bound by a contract of employment, or legal tie creating an analogous relationship of employer and employee, carries out his economic activities ‘privately’ within the meaning of Article 13A(1)(j) of that directive. (see paras 48, 52-53, 55, operative part 2)