Decision No 888/98/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 March 1998 establishing a programme of Community action to ameliorate the indirect taxation systems of the internal market (Fiscalis programme)
Date: 1998-03-30
Institutions: Council of the European Union, European Parliament
Subjects: EU programme, action programme, fiscal policy, project evaluation, single market, tax law

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I

(Acts whose publication is obligatory)

DECISION No 888/98/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF
THE COUNCIL

of 30 March 1998

establishing a programme of Community action to ameliorate the indirect taxa-
tion systems of the internal market (Fiscalis programme)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL
OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community, and in particular Article 100a thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1),

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social
Committee (2),

Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in
Article 189b of the Treaty (3),

(1) Whereas

in the internal market,

the effective,
uniform and efficient application of Community
law is essential for the functioning of indirect taxa-
in particular for the protection of
tion systems,
national
interests
through combating tax evasion and tax avoidance,
avoiding distortions of competition and reducing
burdens on administrations and taxpayers;

and Community

financial

(2) Whereas achieving this effective, uniform and effi-
cient application is a matter for the Community in
partnership with the Member States; whereas,
the greater
although the Member States bear
responsibility in terms of resources,
there is a
significant role for the Community to play in
providing an infrastructure and the necessary
stimulus;

(3) Whereas in order to ensure uniform application of
Community law it is essential that officials respons-
taxation have a high common
ible for indirect
standard of understanding of Community law and

(1) OJ C 177, 11. 6. 1997, p. 8 and OJ C 1, 3. 1. 1998, p. 13.
(2) OJ C 19, 21. 1. 1998, p. 48.
(3) Opinion of the European Parliament of 20 November 1997
(OJ C 371, 8. 12. 1997), Council Common Position of 26
January 1998 (OJ C 62, 26. 2. 1998, p. 38) and Decision of
the European Parliament of 18 February 1998 (OJ C 80, 16.
3. 1998). Council Decision of 3 March 1998.

its implementation in the Member States; whereas
such a standard can be achieved only through
effective initial and continuous training provided
supplementary
by the Member States; whereas
to coordinate and
Community action is useful
foster such training;

(4) Whereas efficient, effective and extensive co-
operation among Member States and between them
and the Commission is important for the func-
tioning of
the
internal market; whereas Community infrastructure
for communication and information exchange is
indispensable in order to achieve this objective;
whereas an impetus from the Community makes it
easier to reach a sufficient level of cooperation;

taxation systems of

the indirect

(5) Whereas continuing improvement of administra-
tive procedures is essential for the functioning of
the indirect taxation systems of the internal market;
whereas, although the primary responsibility for
achieving this
rests with the Member States,
supplementary Community action is needed to
coordinate and stimulate such improvement;

(6) Whereas, therefore, in accordance with the prin-
ciples of subsidiarity and of proportionality set out
in Article 3b of the Treaty, the objectives of the
measures laid down in this Decision cannot all be
sufficiently achieved by the Member States and can
therefore be better achieved at Community level;
whereas this Decision does not go beyond what is
necessary for this purpose;

(7) Whereas the operation of

information-exchange
systems at Community level in the field of indirect
taxation, in particular the system relating to VAT
(VIES) referred to in Council Regulation (EEC)

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indirect

No 218/92 of 27 January 1992 on administrative
cooperation in the field of
taxation
(VAT) (1) has shown the value of information tech-
nology in protecting revenue whilst minimising
administrative burdens; whereas those systems have
proved to be essential tools of cooperation which
have also stimulated greater cooperation among
Member States;

(8) Whereas

and

communication

information-
exchange systems should be set up and their opera-
tion ensured in accordance with the changing
needs of indirect taxation systems so as to ensure
ongoing cooperation;

(9) Whereas the experience gained by the Community
from the programme
established by Council
Decision 93/588/EEC of 29 October 1993 on the
adoption of a programme of Community action on
the subject of the vocational training of indirect
and from
taxation officials
multilateral
shown that
exchanges, seminars and multilateral control exer-
cises
the
programme by bringing officials from different
national administrations together in work activities;
whereas
should therefore be
continued;

(Matthaeus-Tax) (2)
exercises has

objectives

activities

achieve

control

could

those

the

of

the exchange of

(10) Whereas seminars constitute an ideal framework
for
ideas between officials of
national administrations, Commission represent-
atives and,
taxation
experts; whereas suggestions may emerge from
such seminars for improving the legal instruments
in force and facilitating cooperation between
administrations with a view to enabling national
indirect taxation systems to converge;

if necessary, other indirect

(11) Whereas

the

gained

experience

from the
Matthaeus-Tax programme has indicated that the
coordinated development and implementation of a
common training programme such as the one
established by Commission Decision 95/279/EC of
12 July 1995 laying down certain provisions for
implementing Council Decision 93/588/EEC on
the adoption of a programme of Community action
on the subject of the vocational training of indirect
taxation officials (3) could achieve the objectives of
this programme, in particular in achieving a higher
common standard of understanding of Community
law; whereas training programmes should be de-
veloped further in areas to be defined by the

(1) OJ L 24, 1. 2. 1992, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 280, 13. 11. 1993, p. 27.
(3) OJ L 172, 22. 7. 1995, p. 24.

Commission and the Member States; whereas the
Member States should therefore ensure that all
their officials receive the initial training and regular
continuous training envisaged by the common
training programmes;

(12) Whereas a sufficient standard of linguistic compet-
ence on the part of indirect taxation officials has
proved to be essential
to facilitate cooperation;
whereas Member States should therefore provide
the necessary language training for their officials;

(13) Whereas the programme should be open to the
participation of the associated countries of central
and eastern Europe; whereas
the programme
should also be open to the participation of Cyprus;

(14) Whereas the financing of the programme should
be shared between the Community and Member
States, and the Community contribution should
appear in the general budget of
the European
Communities (Part two, section III, Commission);

(15) Whereas this Decision lays down, for the entire
duration of the programme, a financial framework
constituting the principal point of reference, within
the meaning of point 1 of the Declaration by the
the
European Parliament,
Commission of 6 March 1995 on the incorporation
of financial provisions into legislative acts (4), for
the
annual
budgetary
budgetary procedure,

the Council

authority

during

and

the

HAVE ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

Fiscalis programme

A multiannual Community action programme (Fiscalis)
is hereby
hereinafter referred to as ‘the programme',
established for the period 1 January 1998 to 31 December
2002 to ameliorate the functioning of the indirect taxa-
tion systems of the internal market. It shall comprise the
areas of action referred to in Articles 4, 5 and 6.

Article 2

Definitions

For the purposes of this Decision:

(a)

‘indirect taxation' means those indirect taxes which
come within the scope of Community legislation;

(4) OJ C 102, 4. 4. 1996, p. 4.

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(b)

(c)

(d)

(e)

(f)

the public authorities
‘administration' means
Member States responsible for indirect taxation;

in

‘official' means an official of an administration
the application of Community or
responsible for
national
law, regulations or procedures relating to
indirect taxation;

‘exchange' means a working visit organised under the
programme in the Community interest of an official
from an administration in another Member State;

‘multilateral controls' means collaboration of at least
three administrations to integrate and coordinate their
controls of taxable persons having indirect tax obliga-
tions in the Member States concerned, within the
Community legal framework for cooperation;

‘the Community legal
framework for cooperation'
means the body of Community legislation which
provides
for mutual assistance and administrative
cooperation between Member States on indirect taxa-
tion.

Article 3

Objectives

The objectives of the programme shall be to reinforce,
through Community action, the efforts of Member States:

(a)

to enable officials to achieve a high common standard
of understanding of Community law, in particular in
the field of indirect taxation, and of its implementa-
tion in Member States ;

(b) to secure efficient, effective and extensive cooperation
among Member States and between them and the
Commission;

(c) to ensure the continuing improvement of administra-
tive procedures to take account of the needs of admin-
istrations and taxpayers through the development and
dissemination of good administrative practices.

Article 4

Communication

and

information-exchange

systems, manuals and guides

The Commission and Member States shall ensure
1.
that
such existing communication and information-
exchange systems, manuals and guides as they consider
necessary are operational. They shall establish and keep
operational such new communication and information-
exchange systems, manuals and guides as they consider
necessary.

2.
The Community components of the communication
and information-exchange systems shall be the hardware,
software and network connections, which must be
common to all Member States so as to ensure the inter-
connection and interoperability of the systems, whether

they be installed at the premises of the Commission (or a
designated subcontractor) or at premises of Member States
(or a designated subcontractor).

The non-Community components of the commun-
3.
ication and information-exchange systems shall comprise
the national databases forming a part of these systems, the
network connections between the Community and non-
Community components and such software and hardware
as each Member State shall deem appropriate for the full
operation of those systems throughout its administration.

Article 5

Exchanges, seminars and multilateral controls

The Commission and Member States shall organize
1.
exchanges of officials. The exchanges may vary in length,
depending on the case, but may not exceed six months.
Each exchange shall be targeted on a particular work
activity and shall be sufficiently prepared and evaluated
afterwards by the officials and administrations concerned.

The Member States shall
take the necessary steps to
enable exchange officials to play an effective part in the
host administration’s activities and to this end such offi-
cials shall be authorised to carry out the tasks relating to
the duties entrusted to them by the host administration in
accordance with its legal system.

During the exchange, the civil liability of the exchange
official in the performance of his duties shall be treated in
the same way as that of officials of the host administra-
tion. Exchange officials shall be bound by the same rules
of professional secrecy as national officials.

2.
The Commission and the Member States shall or-
ganise seminars to be attended by officials from the
administrations, Commission representatives
if
necessary, other indirect taxation experts.

and,

3.
The Commission and the Member States may,
within the Committee referred to in Article 11, choose,
for experimental purposes, from among the multilateral
controls organised by the Member States within the
Community legal framework for cooperation those whose
costs are to be borne by the Community in accordance
with Article 8. The participating Member States shall send
reports and evaluations concerning such controls to the
Commission and to the Member States.

Article 6

Common training initiative

In order

to encourage

1.
structured cooperation
between national training bodies and officials responsible
for
taxation in administrations,
Member States shall, in cooperation with the Commis-
sion:

training in indirect

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(a) develop existing training programmes and, where
necessary, devise new programmes
to provide a
common core of training for officials so as to enable
them to acquire the necessary common professional
skills and knowledge;

(b) where appropriate, open the training courses

in
indirect taxation provided by each Member State for
its own officials to officials from all Member States;

(c) develop the necessary common tools for indirect taxa-
tion training, including linguistic training tools.

2. Member States shall ensure that their officials receive
the initial and continuous training necessary to acquire
the common professional skills and knowledge in accord-
ance with the common training programmes and the
linguistic training necessary for those officials to attain a
sufficient standard of linguistic competence. In accord-
ance with Article 12(2), they shall inform the Commission
of the content and amount of training that they provide
for their officials.

Article 7

Participation of the associated countries

The programme shall be open to the participation of the
associated countries of central and eastern Europe in
accordance with the conditions laid down in the Eurupe
Agreements and the Additional Protocols relating to their
participation in Community programmes and insofar as
Community law on indirect
taxation so permits. The
programme shall also be open to the participation of
Cyprus insofar as Community law on indirect taxation so
permits.

(c) the cost of the development, purchase, installation and
maintenance of the Community components of the
communication and information-exchange systems
provided for in Article 4(2) and the cost of the day-
the Community components
to-day operation of
installed at the premises of the Commission (or a
designated subcontractor);

(d) the cost of studies to be carried out, if necessary, by
third parties on the impact of the programme, while
guaranteeing the confidentiality of the data.

3. Member States shall bear the following:

(a)

the costs relating to the initial and continuing training
of their officials and to the linguistic training of their
officials as provided for in Article 6. Member States
shall bear the costs relating to the participation of
their officials in any extra activities organised pursuant
to Article 5, over and above those borne by the
Community;

(b) the costs relating to the establishment and func-
tioning of the non-Community components of the
communication and information-exchange systems
provided for in Article 4(3) and the cost of the day-
to-day operation of the Community components of
those systems installed at their premises (or those of a
designated subcontractor).

Article 9

Financial framework

The financial framework for the implementation of the
programme for
the period 1 January 1998 to 31
December 2002 is hereby set at ECU 40 million. The
annual appropriations shall be authorised by the budget-
ary authority within the limits of the financial perspective.

Article 8

Expenditure

Article 10

Implementation

The expenditure necessary for implementation of the
1.
programme shall be divided between the Community and
Member States in accordance with paragraphs 2 and 3.

2.

(a)

The Community shall bear the following:

the travel
and subsistence expenses of officials
participating in another Member State in the activities
provided for in Article 5, the travel and subsistence
taxation experts
expenses of
participating in the seminars provided for in Article
5(2), and likewise the costs relating to the organisation
of the seminars;

the other

indirect

The measures necessary for carrying out this programme
shall be adopted by the Commission in accordance with
the procedure laid down in Article 11. The implementing
measures
provisions
governing collection and control and administrative
cooperation and mutual assistance in the field of indirect
taxation.

affect Community

shall not

Article 11

Committee

(b) the cost of the development of the indirect taxation
training tools provided for under Article 6(1)(c) and
the manuals and guides provided for under Article
4(1);

The Commission shall be assisted by the Standing
1.
Committee on Administrative Cooperation in the field of
Indirect Taxation established by Article 10 of Regulation
(EEC) No 218/92.

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The representative of the Commission shall submit
2.
to the committee a draft of the measures to be taken. The
Committee shall deliver its opinion on the draft within a
time-limit which the Chairman may lay down according
to the urgency of the matter. The opinion shall be deliv-
ered by the majority laid down in Article 148(2) of the
Treaty in the case of decisions which the Council
is
required to adopt on a proposal from the Commission.
The votes of the representatives of the Member States
within the committee shall be weighted in the manner set
out in that Article. The Chairman shall not vote.

3.

(a) The Commission shall adopt measures which shall

apply immediately.

(b) However, if these measures are not in accordance
with the opinion of the committee, they shall be
communicated by the Commission to the Council
forthwith. In that event:

(cid:190) the Commission shall defer application of the
measures which it has decided for a period of
three months from the date of communication,
(cid:190) the Council, acting by a qualified majority,
may take a different decision within the time
limit referred to in the first indent.

In addition to the measures referred to in Article 10,
4.
raised by its
the Committee shall consider matters
Chairman, either on his own initiative or at the request of
the representative of a Member State, concerning the
application of this Decision.

Article 12

Evaluation

2. Member States shall forward to the Commission:

(a) by 30 June 2000 at the latest, an interim report and

(b) by 31 December 2002 at the latest, a final report on
the
and

implementation

impact

the

of

the
programme.

The Commission shall submit

3.
Parliament and to the Council:

to the European

(a) by 30 June 2001 at the latest a communication, drawn
up on the basis of the Member States’ interim reports,
on the desirability of continuing the programme,
accompanied, if necessary, by a suitable proposal;

(b) by 30 June 2003 at the latest, a final report on the
implementation and impact of the programme.

The reports shall also be forwarded to the Economic and
Social Committee and to the Committee of the Regions
for information.

Article 13

Entry into force

This Decision shall enter into force on the day of its
publication in the Official Journal of the European
Communities.

This Decision shall apply from 1 January 1998.

Article 14

Addressees

This Decision is addressed to the Member States.

Done at Brussels, 30 March 1998

The programme shall be subject to continuous evalu-
1.
ation, carried out jointly by the Commission and Member
States. The evaluation shall be effected on the basis of the
reports referred to in paragraphs 2 and 3.

For the European Parliament

For the Council

The President

J.M. GIL-ROBLES

The President

Lord SIMON of HIGH-
BURY