Judgment — ECLI:EU:C:1999:460
Date: 1999-09-29
Language of the case: Portuguese
Court formation: Sixth Chamber
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Taxation;Indirect taxation
Concepts: Indirect taxation on the raising of capital
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: Portugal

Summary of the Judgment 
1. Tax provisions — Harmonisation of laws — Indirect taxes on the raising of capital — 
Taxation for the purposes of Directive 69/335 — Meaning — Charges, in respect of a 
transaction covered by the Directive, collected by notaries employed by the State and 
paid to the State — Covered 
(Council Directive 69/335) 
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SUMMARY — CASE C-56/98 
2. Tax provisions — Harmonisation of laws — Indirect taxes on the raising of capital — 
Increases in share capital and amendments of the statute and articles of capital 
companies to be recorded by notarially attested acts — Essential formality — Charges 
calculated by reference to the company's share capital — Not permissible 
(Council Directive 69/335, Art. 10(c)) 
3. Tax provisions — Harmonisation of laws — Indirect taxes on the raising of capital — 
Notarially attested act recording an increase in the share capital of a capital 
company — Charges by way of fees or dues — Meaning — Charges in direct 
proportion to the share capital raised — Not covered 
(Council Directive 69/335, Art. 12(1)(e)) 
4. Tax provisions — Harmonisation of laws — Indirect taxes on the raising of capital — 
Directive 69/335 — Article 10 — Direct effect 
(Council Directive 69/335, Art. 10) 
1. Directive 69/335 concerning indirect 
taxes on the raising of capital must be 
interpreted as meaning that — in the 
light of the objectives thereby pursued, 
including in particular the abolition of 
indirect taxes having the same charac­
teristics as capital duty — charges 
constitute taxes for the purposes of 
the Directive where they are collected 
for drawing up notarially attested acts 
recording a transaction covered by the 
Directive, under a system where notar­
ies are employed by the State and the 
charges in question are paid in part to 
that State for the financing of its 
official business. 
2. A charge payable for drawing up a 
notarially attested act recording an 
increase in share capital or a change 
in the name or registered office of a 
capital company is, where it amounts 
to a tax for the purposes of Directive 
69/335, in principle prohibited under 
Article 10(c) thereof, in so far as it is 
compulsory to register increases in 
share capital by a notarially attested 
act — which therefore constitutes an 
essential formality connected with the 
legal form of the company, necessary if 
the company is to carry on business — 
and, secondly, in so far as the charges 
collected for drawing up a notarially 
attested act recording a change in the 
name or registered office of a capital 
company are calculated by reference to 
the company's share capital. 
3. 'Fees or dues' within the meaning of 
Article 12(1)(e) of Directive 69/335 do 
not cover a charge collected for draw­
ing up a notarially attested act record­
ing an increase in share capital or a 
change in the name or registered office 
of a capital company, the amount of 
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MODELO V DIRECTOR-GERAL DOS REGISTOS E NOTARIADO 
which increases in direct proportion to 
the share capital raised and in respect 
of which there is no upper limit. 
4. Article 10 of Directive 69/335 creates 
rights on which individuals may rely in 
proceedings before the national courts. 
The prohibition laid down therein is 
expressed in sufficiently precise and 
unconditional terms to be invoked by 
individuals in their national courts in 
order to contest a provision of national 
law which infringes that Directive. 
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