ARCHIVESHISTORIQUES
DELACOMMISSION
COLLECTION RELIEEDES
DOCUMENTS "COM"
COM(79)695
Vol.1979/0237

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COMMISSION OFTHEEUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
PROPOSAL FOR ANELEVENTH COUNCIL DIRECTIVE
ONTHE HARMONIZATION OFTHE LAWS OFTHE (MEMBER STATES
RELATING TOTURNOVER TAXES -EXCLUSION OF
THE FRENCH OVERSEAS DEPARTMENTS FROM THE
SCAPE OFDIRECTIVE 77/388/EEC
(presented bythe Commission tothe Council )COM(79)695 final
Brussels /6th December 1979
•
V '
-y■V. -:-'.,S
COM (79)695 final

EXPLANATORY I"MGRANDUM
Article227(2)oftheEECTreatyprovidedthatonlysomeofits
provisionsweretotakeeffectimmediatelyintheFrenchOverseasdepartments.
TheCouncilwastodeterminebefore1January1960theconditionsunderwhich
theotherprovisionsoftheTreaty,includingthoserelatingtotax,wereto
apply.PriortothejudgmentoftheCourtofJusticeincase148/77(Hansen
andBalle.V.Hauptzollamt Flensburg)deliveredon10October1978,thetwo-year
periodreferredtoinArticle227(2)wasnotinterpretedasastricttime
limit.Accordingly,wherenoCouncildecisionhadbeenadopted,aTreaty
provisioncouldnot,byimplication,beappliedtotheoverseasdepartments ^
Thiswastheinterpretation acceptedbytheCouncilwhenadopting .
theSixthVATDirective (1)on17May1977.Inthiscasesuchaninterpreta-v
tionisclearfromtheworkcarriedoutwithintherelevantCouncilWorking
PartyandistobefoundinparticularindocumentT/494/76(JUR)(fin)of
10June1976.
SinceArticle3(1)oftheDire--.,we,'dealingwithterritorial ,
application,containedareferencetoArticle227oftheTreatyfordefining
theterritoryofthecountryofeachMemberStsitwasunnecessarythere­
foretoincludeinArticle3(2),asrequested c\heFrenchdelegation,the
Frenchoverseasdepartments amongthenationalterritories excludedfromthe
scopeoftheVAT.
' . -y
TheCourtofJustice,settingasidetheearlierinterpretation ,
heldintheabovementioned casethataftertheexpiryofthetwo-yearperiod
providedforinArticle227(2)theprovisionsoftheTreatyandsecondary
lawapplyautomatically totheoverseasterritories,whileacknowledging,
however,that"inordertomakedueallowanceforthespecialgeographic,
economicandsocialsituationofthosedepartments",provisionscouldbe
(1)0Jn»L145of13June1977

-2-
adoptedaftertheexpiryofthetwo-yearperiodcommensurate tothespecific
requirements ofthosepartsoftheFrenchterritories".
ThesituationreferredtobytheCourtinitsjudgmentof10Oc­
tober1978wasinessencethereasonfortheCouncil'sdecisionnottoinclude
theoverseasdepartments inthescopeoftheSixthDirective.
TheCourt'sinterpretation ofArticle227oftheTreatytherefore
requires,iftheCouncil'swishesexpressedwhenadoptingtheSixthDirec­
tivearetobeobserved,anamendmentofArticle3(2)ofthedirectiveby.,
addingtheFrenchoverseasdepartmentstothelistofnationalterritories
excludedfromthescopeofthecommonsystemofvalueaddedtax.
Thisamendmentdoesnothoweveramounttoanamendmentofthe
substanceofthedirective.Sinceitisapurelyformalonetheproposed
amendmentmaythereforetakeeffectonthedateofentryintoforceof.the
*
SixthDirective,whichwaspostponeduntil1January1979bythe.Ninth
s
CouncilDirectiveof26June1978<1).
(1)0Jn°L194of19July1978,p.16

ProposalforanEleventhCouncilDirectiveontheharmonization
ofthelawsoftheMemberStatesrelatingtoturnovertaxes-
ExclusionoftheFrenchoverseasdepartments fromthescopeof
Directive 77/388/EEC
THECOUNCILOFTHEEUROPEANCOMMUNITIES,
HavingregardtotheTreatyestablishing theEuropeanEconomicCommunity,
andinparticularparagraph2ofArticle227thereof,
HavingregardtotheproposalfromtheCommission,
jhereastheprovisionsoftheEECTreatyandsecondarylegislation apply
intheFrenchoverseasdepartments unlessadecisionistakenbytheCommu­
nityinstitutions adoptingmeasuresparticularly suitedtotheeconomicand
socialconditionsofthosedepartments ;
Whereasforreasonsconnectedwiththeirgeographic,.economicandsocial
situation,theFrenchoverseasdepartments shouldbeexcludedfromthescope
ofthecommonsystemofvalueaddedtax,asestablished byCouncilDirective
77/388/EEC1,
HASADOPTEDTHISDIRECTIVE :
Article 1
Afourthindentasfollowsisadded,toArticle3(2)ofDirective
77/388/EEC: ;
"-RepublicofFrance:'
Theoverseasdepartments".
, Article2
ThisDirectiveshallapplywitheffectfrom1January1979.
Article3
ThisDirectiveisaddressedtotheMemberStates.
OJn°L145of13June1977