61981CJ0295_EN
Parties
Subject of the case
Grounds
Decision on costs
Operative part
Parties
IN CASE 295/81
REFERENCE TO THE COURT UNDER ARTICLE 177 OF THE EEC TREATY BY THE BUNDESFINANZHOF ( FEDERAL FINANCE COURT ), FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY, FOR A PRELIMINARY RULING IN THE ACTION PENDING BEFORE THAT COURT BETWEEN
INTERNATIONAL FLAVORS AND FRAGRANCES IFF ( DEUTSCHLAND ) GMBH, 60, REESER STRASSE, EMMERICH,
AND
HAUPTZOLLAMT ( PRINCIPAL CUSTOMS OFFICE ) BAD REICHENHALL,
Subject of the case
ON THE INTERPRETATION OF THE SECOND SENTENCE OF GENERAL RULE 2 ( A ) FOR THE INTERPRETATION OF THE NOMENCLATURE OF THE COMMON CUSTOMS TARIFF,
Grounds
1 BY ORDER OF 20 OCTOBER 1981, RECEIVED AT THE COURT REGISTRY ON 25 NOVEMBER 1981, THE BUNDESFINANZHOF ( FEDERAL FINANCE COURT ) REFERRED TO THE COURT OF JUSTICE FOR A PRELIMINARY RULING, PURSUANT TO ARTICLE 177 OF THE EEC TREATY, A QUESTION AS TO THE SCOPE OF THE SECOND SENTENCE OF RULE 2 ( A ) OF THE GENERAL RULES FOR THE INTERPRETATION OF THE NOMENCLATURE OF THE COMMON CUSTOMS TARIFF ( OFFICIAL JOURNAL 1974, L 1, P . 11 OF 1 JANUARY 1974 ) WITH A VIEW TO THE TARIFF CLASSIFICATION OF CONCENTRATES OF MAHALEB-
CHERRY AND BLACK-CURRANT JUICES AND OF THE FLAVOUR CONCENTRATES THEREOF, WHICH WERE IMPORTED FROM YUGOSLAVIA IN 1974 AND 1975 BY THE APPELLANT ON A POINT OF LAW IN THE MAIN PROCEEDINGS AND WHICH, ACCORDING TO THE LATTER, WERE INTENDED TO BE MIXED IN ORDER TO BE MARKETED AS MAHALEB-CHERRY JUICE OR BLACK-CURRANT JUICE .
2 THE HAUPTZOLLAMT ( PRINCIPAL CUSTOMS OFFICE ) BAD REICHENHALL DISMISSED THE OBJECTION AGAINST THE CLASSIFICATION MADE BY THE SCHWARZBACH-AUTOBAHN CUSTOMS OFFICE AND DEFINITIVELY CLASSIFIED THE FRUIT-JUICE CONCENTRATES IN SUBHEADING 20.07 A III ( A ) ( RATE OF DUTY 42% ) AND THE FLAVOUR CONCENTRATES IN SUBHEADING 33.04 ( RATE OF DUTY 8% ).
3 RULE 2 ( A ) OF THE GENERAL RULES FOR THE INTERPRETATION OF THE NOMENCLATURE OF THE COMMON CUSTOMS TARIFF PROVIDES THAT ' ' ANY REFERENCE IN A HEADING TO AN ARTICLE SHALL BE TAKEN TO INCLUDE A REFERENCE TO THAT ARTICLE INCOMPLETE OR UNFINISHED PROVIDED THAT, AS IMPORTED, THE INCOMPLETE OR UNFINISHED ARTICLE HAS THE ESSENTIAL CHARACTER OF THE COMPLETE OR FINISHED ARTICLE . IT SHALL ALSO BE TAKEN TO INCLUDE A REFERENCE TO THAT ARTICLE COMPLETE OR FINISHED ( OR FALLING TO BE CLASSIFIED AS COMPLETE OR FINISHED BY VIRTUE OF THIS RULE ), IMPORTED UNASSEMBLED OR DISASSEMBLED ' ' .
4 THE DISPUTE CENTRES ON THE QUESTION WHETHER THE FRUIT-JUICE CONCENTRATES AND FLAVOUR CONCENTRATES IN QUESTION MUST BE REGARDED AS ARTICLES ' ' IMPORTED UNASSEMBLED OR DISASSEMBLED ' '
AS PROVIDED FOR IN THE ABOVE-MENTIONED GENERAL RULE FOR INTERPRETATION . IF THAT WERE THE CASE, THE FRUIT-JUICE CONCENTRATES AND FLAVOUR CONCENTRATES WOULD HAVE TO BE CLASSIFIED IN SUBHEADING 20.07 B II ( A ) 6 ( AA ) ( MAHALEB-CHERRY JUICE ) OR ( BB ) ( BLACK-CURRANT JUICE ), THE RESULT OF WHICH WOULD BE TO MAKE THE APPLICABLE RATES 17% AND 18% RESPECTIVELY .
5 IN ORDER TO RESOLVE THIS PROBLEM, THE BUNDESFINANZHOF REFERRED THE FOLLOWING QUESTION TO THE COURT FOR A PRELIMINARY RULING :
' ' IS THE SECOND SENTENCE OF RULE 2 ( A ) OF THE GENERAL RULES FOR THE INTERPRETATION OF THE NOMENCLATURE OF THE COMMON CUSTOMS TARIFF TO BE INTERPRETED AS MEANING THAT MAHALEB-CHERRY CONCENTRATE AND BLACK-CURRANT CONCENTRATE MADE OF MAHALEB-CHERRY JUICE AND BLACK-CURRANT JUICE RESPECTIVELY, ON THE ONE HAND, AND MAHALEB-CHERRY FLAVOUR CONCENTRATE AND BLACK-CURRANT FLAVOUR CONCENTRATE, ON THE OTHER, ARE TO BE REGARDED AS ARTICLES IMPORTED UNASSEMBLED OR DISASSEMBLED ( ' ZERLEGT ' ), IF THE FRUIT-JUICE CONCENTRATES AND FLAVOUR CONCENTRATES, DEALT IN AT THE SAME PRICE, ARE MIXED TOGETHER AGAIN IMMEDIATELY BEFORE USE OR BOTTLING?
' '
6 IT IS NECESSARY THEREFORE TO CONSIDER WHETHER THE FRUIT-JUICE CONCENTRATES AND FLAVOUR CONCENTRATES IN QUESTION MUST, WHEN PRODUCED TO THE CUSTOMS AUTHORITIES, BE REGARDED AS PRODUCTS WHICH ARE ' ' UNASSEMBLED OR DISASSEMBLED ' '
WITHIN THE MEANING OF GENERAL RULE 2 ( A ).
7 IN THAT REGARD, IT SEEMS CONCEIVABLE THAT THE EXPRESSION USED IN THE GERMAN VERSION OF THE TEXT IN QUESTION, ' ' ZERLEGT GESTELLT WIRD ' ', CAN APPLY TO THE SEPARATION OR TO THE MIXING OF THE CONSTITUENTS OF A LIQUID .
8 THE OTHER LANGUAGE VERSIONS OF THE SAME TEXT APPEAR HOWEVER TO BE MORE RESTRICTIVE . THE FRENCH TEXT USES THE WORDS ' ' L ' ETAT DEMONTE OU NON MONTE, THE ITALIAN VERSION THE WORDS ' ' SMONTATO O NON MONTATO ' '
AND THE ENGLISH VERSION REFERS TO AN ' ' UNASSEMBLED OR DISASSEMBLED ' '
ARTICLE . THE DUTCH, DANISH AND GREEK VERSIONS EXPRESS THE SAME MEANING AS THE FRENCH, ITALIAN AND ENGLISH TEXTS .
9 IN THESE CIRCUMSTANCES, THE GERMAN VERSION MUST BE READ IN THE LIGHT OF THE OTHER LANGUAGE VERSIONS .
10 IN ORDINARY LANGUAGE, THE CONCEPT OF ASSEMBLY IS TAKEN TO MEAN THE OPERATION WHEREBY THE COMPONENTS ( OF A MECHANISM, A DEVICE OR A COMPLEX OBJECT ) ARE ASSEMBLED IN ORDER TO RENDER IT SERVICEABLE OR TO MAKE IT FUNCTION .
11 THE ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENT IS THEREFORE, ON THE ONE HAND, THAT THE DISASSEMBLED ARTICLE MUST NOT BE USABLE FOR THE PURPOSES EXPECTED OF THE FINISHED PRODUCT AND, ON THE OTHER HAND, THAT THE COMPONENT PARTS OF THE PRODUCT MUST NORMALLY, IN ORDER TO BE OF USE, BE ASSEMBLED SO AS TO CONSTITUTE THE FINISHED PRODUCT .
12 IT IS APPARENT FROM THE FILE ON THE CASE THAT THE PRODUCTS IN QUESTION, FRUIT-JUICE CONCENTRATES AND FLAVOUR CONCENTRATES, HAVE DIVERSE USES IN THE FORM IN WHICH THEY ARE IMPORTED AND MAY BE MARKETED SEPARATELY ; MIXING THEM IS MERELY ONE POSSIBILITY .
13 AS A RESULT, FOR THE PURPOSES OF TARIFF CLASSIFICATION AT THE TIME OF IMPORTATION, IT IS WHOLLY UNNECESSARY TO CONSIDER THE POSSIBILITY THAT THE LIQUIDS MAY BE MIXED OR ' ' ASSEMBLED ' '
WHEN SUCH A PROCEDURE IS NEITHER NECESSARY NOR CLEARLY CERTAIN TO TAKE PLACE .
14 THAT INTERPRETATION IS MOREOVER CONFIRMED BY PARAGRAPH VI OF THE EXPLANATORY NOTES TO THE CUSTOMS COOPERATION COUNCIL NOMENCLATURE, ACCORDING TO WHICH ARTICLES WHOSE VARIOUS COMPONENTS ARE INTENDED TO BE ASSEMBLED EITHER BY SIMPLE MEANS ( NUTS, BOLTS AND THE LIKE ) OR, FOR EXAMPLE, BY RIVETING OR WELDING, MUST BE REGARDED AS UNASSEMBLED OR DISASSEMBLED .
15 MOREOVER, ACCORDING TO PARAGRAPH VII OF THOSE NOTES, THE CONTESTED RULE DOES NOT GENERALLY APPLY TO THE PRODUCTS IN SECTIONS I TO VI ( CHAPTERS 1 TO 38 OF THE COMMON CUSTOMS TARIFF ).
16 IT IS THEREFORE APPROPRIATE TO STATE IN REPLY TO THE NATIONAL COURT THAT THE SECOND SENTENCE OF RULE 2 ( A ) OF THE GENERAL RULES FOR THE INTERPRETATION OF THE NOMENCLATURE OF THE COMMON CUSTOMS TARIFF MUST BE INTERPRETED AS MEANING THAT MAHALEB-CHERRY CONCENTRATE AND BLACK-CURRANT CONCENTRATE, ON THE ONE HAND, AND, ON THE OTHER, MAHALEB-CHERRY AND BLACK-CURRANT FLAVOUR CONCENTRATES, EXTRACTED FROM THOSE FRUITS, MAY NOT BE REGARDED AS ARTICLES IMPORTED UNASSEMBLED OR DISASSEMBLED, EVEN WHERE THE FRUIT-JUICE CONCENTRATES AND THE FLAVOUR CONCENTRATES, WHICH ARE SOLD AT THE SAME PRICE, ARE MIXED IMMEDIATELY BEFORE USE OR BOTTLING .
Decision on costs
COSTS
17 THE COSTS INCURRED BY THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, WHICH HAS SUBMITTED OBSERVATIONS TO THE COURT, ARE NOT RECOVERABLE . AS THESE PROCEEDINGS ARE, IN SO FAR AS THE PARTIES TO THE MAIN PROCEEDINGS ARE CONCERNED, IN THE NATURE OF A STEP IN THE PROCEEDINGS PENDING BEFORE THE NATIONAL COURT, THE DECISION ON COSTS IS A MATTER FOR THAT COURT .
Operative part
ON THOSE GROUNDS,
THE COURT ( SECOND CHAMBER )
IN ANSWER TO THE QUESTION REFERRED TO IT BY THE BUNDESFINANZHOF, BY ORDER OF 20 OCTOBER 1981, HEREBY RULES :
THE SECOND SENTENCE OF RULE 2 ( A ) OF THE GENERAL RULES FOR THE INTERPRETATION OF THE NOMENCLATURE OF THE COMMON CUSTOMS TARIFF MUST BE INTERPRETED AS MEANING THAT MAHALEB-CHERRY CONCENTRATE AND BLACK-CURRANT CONCENTRATE, ON THE ONE HAND, AND, ON THE OTHER, MAHALEB-CHERRY FLAVOUR CONCENTRATE AND BLACK-CURRANT FLAVOUR CONCENTRATES, EXTRACTED FROM THOSE FRUITS MAY NOT BE REGARDED AS ARTICLES IMPORTED UNASSEMBLED OR DISASSEMBLED, EVEN IF THE FRUIT-JUICE CONCENTRATES AND FLAVOUR CONCENTRATES, DEALT IN AT THE SAME PRICE, ARE MIXED TOGETHER AGAIN IMMEDIATELY BEFORE USE OR BOTTLING .