No C 5/2 Official Journal of the European Communities 9.1.87 
II 
(Preparatory Acts) 
COMMISSION 
Proposal for a Council Directive amending for the first time Directive 83/183/EEC on tax 
exemptions applicable to permanent imports from a Member State of the personal property of 
individuals 
COM(86) 584 final 
(Submitted by the Commission to the Council on 16 December 1986) 
(87/C 5/02) 
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, 
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European 
Economic Community, and in particular Article 99 
thereof, of the normal residence; whereas it is necessary to ease 
the existing rules relating to the period of use of 
imported property and to the quantitative limits on 
certain items, 
HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE: 
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 
Having regard to the opinion of the European Par­
liament, 
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and 
Social Committee, 
Whereas, when it adopted Directive 83/183/EEC of 28 
March 1983 ('), the Council undertook to adopt unani­
mously, on a proposal from the Commission, provisions 
permitting a substantial relaxation and even the removal 
of the formalities relating to the grant of tax exemptions 
applicable to permanent imports from a Member State of 
the personal property of individuals; whereas the ad hoc 
Committee on a People's Europe, in its first report (2), 
endorsed by the Brussels European Council of 29 and 30 
March 1985, invited the Commission to present such a 
proposal; 
Whereas it is necessary to facilitate the free movement of 
persons within the Community as far as possible; Article 1 
Council Directive 83/183/EEC of 28 March 1983 is 
hereby amended as follows: 
1. In Article 2: 
Paragraph 2 (b) shall be deleted and replaced by the 
following: 
'(b) of which the person concerned has had the use in 
the Member State from which it is being 
exported. In the case of motor-driven vehicles 
(including their trailers), caravans, mobile homes, 
pleasure boats and private aircraft which were 
first supplied subject to VAT less than four years 
before the date of importation, Member States 
may require that the person concerned should 
have had the use of them for a period of at least 
six months before the change of residence. 
However, for the goods referred to in the second 
sentence of (a), Member States may extend the 
above period to 12 months.' 
2. Article 4 shall be deleted. 
Whereas, pending the abolition of tax frontiers required 
to achieve a true internal market, it is necessary to 
harmonize and relax certain formalities necessary for the 
grant of the import exemption provided for in Directive 
83/183/EEC, particularly as regards the drawing up of 
an inventory of the property and proof of the existence 
(') OJ No L 105, 23. 4. 1983, p. 64. 
O Doc. SN 484/6/85 (EDC) — Report to the Brussels 
European Council of 29 and 30 March 1985. 3. In Article 5: 
Paragraph 1 shall be deleted and replaced by the 
following paragraph: 
'1. Member States may impose limits on the duty­
free importation of goods listed in Article 4 (1) of 
Directive 69/169/EEC (3). However, those limits may 
O OJNoL 133, 4.6. 1969, p. 6. 
9.1.87 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 5/3 
not be less than four times the quantities shown in 
column II of the said Article, except in the case of 
tobacco products, the duty-free importation of which 
may be limited to the quantities shown in the said 
column.' 
4. In Article 7: 
(a) Paragraph 1 shall become paragraph 1 (a); 
(b) The following subparagraphs (b) and (c) shall be 
added: 
'(b) the grant of the exemption shall be subject to 
the drawing up of an inventory of goods on 
plain paper accompanied by a declaration, 
drafted in accordance with the specimen 
annexed to this Directive and in one of the 
official languages of the Community 
accepted by the competent authorities in the 
Member State in which the formalities 
relating to entry for home use are carried 
out. No reference to value shall be included 
on the inventory of goods; 
(c) on the occasion of a transfer of normal 
residence, Member States may not demand 
proof of the former normal residence in the 
country of provenance.' 
(c) The following sentence shall 
paragraph 2: idded to 
'Where, in accordance with Article 3, the 
property is imported in a number of operations 
within the period referred to above, Member 
States may not require that a complete inventory 
be produced on the occasion of the first import 
operation or that subsequent operations be 
conducted through the same frontier-crossing 
point.' 6. In Article 9 
(a) in paragraph 1, the words 'By derogation from 
the second indent of Article 2 (2) (b)' shall be 
deleted; the two words 'but' and 'other' in line 2 
are also deleted; the words 'acquired or which 
came into his possession less than three months 
previously' in paragraph 1 shall be deleted and 
replaced by the words: 'acquired or of which he 
had the use'; 
(b) in paragraph 2, the amount '200 ECU' referred to 
in the second sentence shall be replaced by the 
words: 'the amount of the exemption laid down in 
Article 2 (1) of Directive 69/169/EEC. (')'; 
the amount '200 ECU' referred to in the third 
sentence shall be replaced by the words: 'this 
amount'; the amount '1 000 ECU' shall be 
replaced by the words: 'four times the value laid 
down in the said Article'. 
(') OJNo L 133, 4. 6. 1969, p. 6. 
7. In Article 11 (1): 
The words 'Until the entry into force of the 
Community tax rules adopted pursuant to Article 
14 (2) of Directive 77/388/EEC shall be deleted. 
8. The specimen declaration mentioned in Article 7 (1) (b) 
is annexed to this Directive. 
Article 2 
1. Member States shall bring into force the laws, regu­
lations and administrative provisions necessary to comply 
with this Directive by 1 July 1987 at the latest. They 
shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof. 
5. In Article 8 (2): 
(a) The words 'for a period of at least 12 months' at 
the end of the first subparagraph shall be deleted; 2. Member States shall inform the Commission of the 
provisions which they adopt to implement this Directive. 
Article 3 
(b) the third subparagraph shall be deleted. This Directive is addressed to the Member States. 
No C 5/4 Official Journal of the European Communities 9.1.87 
ANNEX 
Declaration relating to the removal of property without payment of duties and taxes on the transfer of 
normal residence between Member States 
(Please refer to the explanatory notes of the Member State of importation before completing the declaration) 
1. Surname and forenames of declarant: 
2. Name and address of removal firm or agent (where applicable): 
3. Previous normal residence in the country of provenance: 
Address: 
Occupied from: to: 
4. New normal residence: 
Address: 
Intended date of transfer of normal residence: 
5. Declaration 
I, the undersigned, hereby declare that the property shown in the inventory: 
(a) has been used by me in the Member State of provenance. I further declare that the following 
item(s): 
— motor-driven vehicle 
— caravan 
— pleasure boat 
— private aircraft (') which was (were) first supplied subject to VAT less than four years 
before the date of removal, 
has (have) been used by me personally since (2); 
(b) was acquired under normal market conditions (including payment of taxes) and that no exemption 
from or refund of tax has been or is granted in respect of the definitive export from the country of 
provenance. 
I hereby certify that the information given above is accurate. 
At Date 
Signature 
(') Delete as appropriate. 
(2) Indicate the date.