Judgment — ECLI:EU:C:2000:481
Date: 2000-09-21
Language of the case: Portuguese
Court formation: Fourth 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, which are collected by notaries employed by the 
State and contribute to the State budget — Covered 
(Council Directive 69/335) 
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SUMMARY — CASE C-19/99 
2. Tax provisions — Harmonisation of laws — Indirect taxes on the raising of capital — 
Increases in the share capital and amendments to the statutes 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. 11(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 pursued by it, in 
particular the abolition of indirect 
taxes having the same characteristics 
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 notaries are 
employed by the State and the charges 
in question are paid in part to that 
State for the financing of its official 
business. 
(see paras 21-23 
and operative part 1) 
2. A charge payable for drawing up a 
notarially attested act recording an 
increase in the share capital or an 
amendment to the statutes of a capital 
company is, where it amounts to a tax 
for the purposes of Directive 69/335, in 
principle prohibited under Arti­
cle 10(c) thereof, in so far as, first, 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, the charges collected for 
drawing up an act recording an amend­
ment to a company's statutes are cal­
culated by reference to its share capital. 
(see paras 26-28 
and operative part 2) 
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MODELO 
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 the share capital or 
an amendment to the statutes of a 
capital company, the amount of which 
increases in direct proportion to the 
share capital raised and in respect of 
which there is no upper limit. 
(see para. 35 
and operative part 3) 
4. Article 10 of Directive 69/335 creates 
rights on which individuals may rely in 
proceedings before the national courts. 
The prohibition laid down in that 
provision is expressed in sufficiently 
precise and unconditional terms to be 
relied upon by individuals in the 
national courts in order to contest a 
provision of national law which is 
contrary to the directive. 
(see paras 37-38 
and operative part 4) 
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