62024CJ0375_SUM
Case C‑375/24
Keesing Deutschland GmbH
v
Finanzamt für Körperschaften II
(Request for a preliminary rulingfrom the Finanzgericht Berlin-Brandenburg)
Judgment of the Court (Ninth Chamber) of 1 August 2025
(Reference for a preliminary ruling – Taxation – Common system of value added tax (VAT) – Directive 2006/112/EC – Article 98 – Option for the Member States to apply a reduced rate of VAT to certain supplies of goods and services – National legislation using the Combined Nomenclature to establish the coverage of the category of goods subject to a reduced rate – Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 – Combined Nomenclature – Tariff headings – Heading 4902 – Scope – Concept of ‘periodicals’ – Books containing number sudoku games and published periodically – Absence of text composed mainly of alphabetic characters)
Harmonisation of fiscal legislation – Common system of value added tax – Option for the Member States to apply a reduced rate to certain supplies of goods and services – Supplies of goods and services included in the categories in Annex III to the VAT Directive – Option for the national legislature to classify them in accordance with the most appropriate method – Classification by reference to categories that do not coincide with the headings or subheadings of the Combined Nomenclature – Whether permissible – Conditions
(Council Regulation No 2658/87; Council Directive 2006/112, Art. 98 and Annex III)
(see paragraphs 32-34)
Customs union – Common Customs Tariff – Tariff headings – Newspapers, journals and periodicals, whether or not illustrated or containing advertising material – Books bound in paper published every eight weeks and containing mainly printed sudoku games including certain numbers in the series 1 to 9 in a grid – Classification under heading 4902 of the Combined Nomenclature
(Council Regulation No 2658/87, Annex I, heading 4902)
(see paragraphs 47-55, 57, operative part)
See the text of the decision.