Opinion of the Advocate General — ECLI:EU:C:2005:328
Date: 2005-05-26
Language of the case: French
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Right of establishment;Freedom to provide services;Free movement of workers
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: Belgium

Summary of the Judgment Freedom of movement for persons – Freedom of establishment – Restrictions – Domestic legislation requiring a self-employed worker resident in the Member State concerned to register there a vehicle made available to him by his employer established in another Member State – Not permissible – No justification (Art. 43 EC) It is contrary to Article 43 EC for the domestic legislation of one Member State to require a self-employed worker residing in that Member State to register there a company vehicle made available to him by the company for which he works, established in another Member State, when it is not intended that that vehicle should be used essentially in the first Member State on a permanent basis and it is not, in fact, used in that manner. Such an obligation to register cannot be justified on grounds of preventing tax avoidance or abuse, of the need for reliable identification, of road safety or yet of environmental policy. (see paras 44-45, 48-49, 52, 55, operative part)