Opinion of the Advocate General — ECLI:EU:C:1999:568
Date: 1999-11-18
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Freedom to provide services
Procedure: Action for failure to fulfil obligations - successful
Origin: Italy

Summary of the Judgment 
1. Member States — Obligations — Failure to fulfil obligations — Retention of a 
national provision incompatible with Community law — Justification on the basis of 
administrative practices ensuring that the Treaty is applied — Not permissible 
(EC Treaty, Art. 169 (now Art. 226 EC)) 
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SUMMARY — CASE C-358/98 
2. Freedom to provide services — Restrictions — National legislation making cleansing 
undertakings established in other Member States subject to an obligation to register in 
the register of undertakings — Nor permissible 
(EC Treaty, Art. 59 (now, after amendment, Art. 49 EC» 
1. The incompatibility of national legisla­
tion with Community provisions, even 
provisions which are directly applic­
able, can be finally remedied only by 
means of national provisions of a 
binding nature which have the same 
legal force as those which must be 
amended. Mere administrative prac­
tices, which by their nature are alter­
able at will by the authorities and are 
not given the appropriate publicity, 
cannot be regarded as constituting the 
proper fulfilment of obligations under 
the Treaty. 
(see para. 17) 
2. A Member State which, pursuant to 
national legislation, makes the provi­
sion of cleansing, disinfection, disinfes-
tation, rodent-control and sanitation 
services by undertakings established in 
other Member States subject to regis­
tration in the register of undertakings, 
without excluding from its scope those 
service providers established in other 
Member States who, under the legisla­
tion of their Member State of establish­
ment, already satisfy equivalent formal 
requirements, is in breach of its obliga­
tions under Article 59 of the EC Treaty 
(now, after amendmen t , Art i­
cle 49 EC). 
(see paras 13, 14 and 18 and operative 
part) 
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