Opinion of the Advocate General — ECLI:EU:C:2001:585
Date: 2001-10-25
Language of the case: Italian
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Freedom to provide services;Transport
Procedure: Action for failure to fulfil obligations - successful
Origin: Italy

Summary of the Judgment 
Transport — Maritime transport — Freedom to provide services — Restrictions — 
National legislation providing for an embarkation/disembarkation tax for passengers — 
Tax applicable only to passengers arriving from or travelling to ports in another Member 
State or a third country, excluding transport between two ports situated on the national 
territory of the Member State concerned — Not permissible 
(Art. 59 EC Treaty (now, after amendment, Art. 49 EC); Art. 1 Council Regulation 
No 4055/86) 
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SUMMARY — CASE C-295/00 
National legislation which imposes a tax 
on passengers embarking and disembarking 
in three ports in the Member State con­
cerned when arriving from or travelling to 
ports in another Member State or a third 
country, but not in the case of carriage 
between two ports located on the national 
territory of the first Member State, must be 
regarded as a restriction on the freedom to 
provide maritime transport services pro­
hibited under the combined provisions of 
Article 59 of the Treaty (now, after amend­
ment, Article 49 EC) and Article 1 of 
Regulation No 4055/86 applying the prin­
ciple of freedom to provide services to 
maritime transport between Member States 
and third countries. The freedom laid down 
by Article 59 of the Treaty precludes the 
application of any national legislation 
which has the effect of making the provi­
sion of services between Member States 
more difficult than the provision of services 
purely within one Member State. 
(see paras 10, 14, operative part) 
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