WRITTEN QUESTION E-4021/98

by Johanna Boogerd-Quaak (ELDR) to the Commission

(8 January 1999)

Subject: Tax-free purchases by members of the Commission and officials of the Community Institutions

Members of the Commission and officials of the Community Institutions are entitled albeit pursuant to different legal bases and subject to different conditions, to a number of privileges, in respect of indirect taxation.

1. Can the Commission provide an overview of the privileges in respect of indirect taxation enjoyed by the members of the Commission, on the one hand, and officials of the Community institutions, on the other?

2. To what extent does the Commission regard the Council decision to abolish duty-free sales within the European Union with effect from 1 July 1999 as grounds for changing the derogations applying to members of the Commission - even though such derogations are based on international conventions rather than Community law - for example, through a code of conduct?

3. Would it not be better to replace the allowance for removal expenses and for the purchase of furniture and fittings, to which officials of the community institutions are entitled in their first two years of service, with a flat-rate sum?

4. As European integration proceeds and the original idea of privileges for Community officials and exchanges of diplomatic staff and military personnel between the Member States diminishes in importance, to what extent is there still a need to grant diplomatic status within the European Union to employees posted from one Member State to another?

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(30 March 1999)

1. When officials recruited from abroad first take up their duties in one the European Community institutions in Belgium, the Belgian Government grants them the privilege of purchasing certain personal consumer goods free of VAT for up to 12 months within a two year period following the date on which they begin work. A list of these goods, together with the conditions governing the purchase thereof, is being sent direct to the Honourable Member.

This privilege is also enjoyed by temporary staff and by other staff covered by the Staff Regulations if they are engaged on contracts for a minimum of 12 successive months.

Luxembourg and Ireland grant similar privileges to officials and other regular staff when they first take up their duties in those two Member States.

On the other hand, Belgium treats Members of the Commission as having diplomatic status. In particular with regard to the purchase of goods for personal consumption, they enjoy the same advantages as Member States' diplomats accredited to Belgium.

2. The Commission considers that the advantages deriving from diplomatic status within the Community are a totally separate issue from that of intra-Community tax-free sales.

3. The conditions and procedures for payment of the installation allowance and for reimbursement of removal costs are laid down in Annex VII to the Staff Regulations.

4. The Commission has already considered the question of whether the diplomatic privileges referred to by the Honourable Member are compatible with the single market. The Honourable Member is referred to the Commission's answer to Written Question E-3878/98 by Mr De Coene(1).

(1) OJ C 325, 12.11.1999, p. 35.