Judgment of the Court of 15 May 2001 in Case C-34/99 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the House of Lords): Commissioners of Customs and Excise v Primback Ltd (Value added tax — Sixth Directive 77/388/EEC — Taxable amount — Retail credit sales of goods — Credit granted by a person other than the seller and at no cost to the customer — Payment by finance company to the seller of less than the price of the goods)
Date: 2001-07-14
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: VAT, consumer, credit, financial institution, interpretation of the law, retail trade

14.7.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 200/17

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

(Fourth Chamber)

of 10 May 2001

of 15 May 2001

in Case C-285/00: Commission of the European Communi-
ties v French Republic (1)

(Failure by a Member State to fulfil its obligations — Failure
to transpose Directive 89/48/EEC within the prescribed
period — Recognition of diplomas giving access to the
profession of psychologist)

(2001/C 200/29)

(Language of the case: French)

(Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be published
in the European Court Reports)

In Case C-285/00: Commission of the European Communities
(Agent: B. Mongin) v French Republic (Agents: J.-F. Dobelle
and C. Bergeot-Nunes) — application for a declaration that, by
its failure to enact
legislation specifically concerning the
recognition of diplomas giving access to the profession of
psychologist for the purpose of implementing, as regards that
profession, Council Directive 89/48/EEC of 21 December
1988 on a general system for the recognition of higher-
education diplomas awarded on completion of professional
education and training of at least three years’ duration (OJ
1989 L 19, p. 16), the French Republic has failed to fulfil its
obligations under that directive — the Court (Fourth Chamber),
composed of: A. La Pergola, President of
the Chamber,
D.A.O. Edward (Rapporteur) and C.W.A. Timmermans, Judges;
D. Ruiz-Jarabo Colomer, Advocate General; R. Grass, for the
Registrar, has given a judgment on 10 May 2001, in which it:

1. Declares that, by its failure to enact legislation specifically
concerning the recognition of diplomas giving access to the
profession of psychologist for the purpose of implementing, as
that profession, Council Directive 89/48JEEC of
regards
21 December 1988 on a general system for the recognition of
higher-education diplomas awarded on completion of pro-
fessional education and training of at least three years’ duration,
the French Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under
that directive;

2. Orders the French Republic to pay the costs.

(1) OJ C 259 of 9.9.2000.

in Case C-34/99 (reference for a preliminary ruling from
the House of Lords): Commissioners of Customs and
Excise v Primback Ltd (1)

(Value added tax — Sixth Directive 77/388/EEC — Taxable
amount — Retail credit sales of goods — Credit granted by
a person other than the seller and at no cost to the customer
— Payment by finance company to the seller of less than the
price of the goods)

(2001/C 200/30)

(Language of the case: English)

In Case C-34/99: reference to the Court under Article 177 of
the EC Treaty (now Article 234 EC) from the House of Lords
(United Kingdom) for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings
pending before that court between Commissioners of Customs
and Excise and Primback Ltd — on the interpretation of
Article 11A(1)(a) of Sixth Council Directive 77/388/EEC of
17 May 1977 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member
States relating to turnover taxes — Common system of value
added tax: uniform basis of assessment (OJ 1977 L 145, p. 1)
— the Court, composed of: G.C. Rodrı´guez Iglesias, President,
C. Gulmann, A. La Pergola, V. Skouris (Presidents of Cham-
bers), D.A.O. Edward, J.-P. Puissochet, L. Sevo´ n, R. Schintgen
(Rapporteur) and N. Colneric,
Judges; S. Alber, Advocate
General; H. von Holstein, Deputy Registrar, for the Registrar,
has given a judgment on 15 May 2001, in which it has ruled:

On a proper construction of Article 11A(1)(a) of Sixth Council
Directive 77/388/EEC of 17 May 1977 on the harmonisation of
the laws of the Member States relating to turnover taxes — Common
system of value added tax: uniform basis of assessment, where a
supply of goods for consideration has the following features:

— a retail trader sells goods in return for payment of the advertised
price which he invoices to the purchaser and which does not
vary according to whether the customer pays in cash or by way
of credit;

— should the purchaser so request, the acquisition of the goods is
financed by the provision to him of interest-free credit by a
finance company distinct from the seller;

C 200/18

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

14.7.2001

— the finance company gives an undertaking to the purchaser that
it will pay to the seller on the purchaser’s behalf the sales price
advertised and invoiced by the seller;

— the finance company in fact pays to the seller, pursuant to
agreements concluded with the seller but of which the purchaser
is unaware, a sum less than the price advertised and invoiced;
and

— the purchaser repays to the finance company a sum equal to the

price advertised and invoiced,

the taxable amount for purposes of calculating the value added tax
payable on that sale consists of the full amount payable by the
purchaser.

(1) OJ C 100 of 10.4.1999.

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

of 17 May 2001

in Case C-449/98 P: International Express Carriers Confer-
ence (IECC) v Commission of the European Communities
and Others (1)

(Appeal — Decision rejecting complaint — Competition —
Postal services — Remail)

(2001/C 200/31)

(Language of the case: English)

In Case C-449/98 P: International Express Carriers Conference
(IECC), established in Geneva (Switzerland), represented by
E. Morgan de Rivery, J. Derenne and M. Cunningham, avocats
— appeal against the judgment of the Court of First Instance
of the European Communities (Third Chamber, Extended
Composition) of 16 September 1998 in Case T-110/95 IECC
v Commission [1998] ECR II-3605, seeking to have that
judgment set aside, the other parties to the proceedings
being Commission of the European Communities, (Agents:
K. Wiedner, assisted by N. Forwood), La Poste (avocat:
H. Lehman), United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern
Ireland, and The Post Office — the Court, composed of:
G.C. Rodrı´guez Iglesias, President, A. La Pergola and M. Wathe-
let (Presidents of Chambers), J.-P. Puissochet, P. Jann, L. Sevo´ n,
N. Colneric, S. von Bahr and C.W.A. Timmermans (Rapporte-
ur), Judges; D. Ruiz-Jarabo Colomer, Advocate General; D. Lou-
terman-Hubeau, Head of Division, for the Registrar, has given
a judgment on 17 May 2001, in which it:

1. Dismisses the appeal;

2. Orders International Express Carriers Conference (IECC) to pay

the costs.

(1) OJ C 48 of 20.2.1999.

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

of 17 May 2001

in Case C-450/98 P: International Express Carriers Confer-
ence (IECC) v Commission of the European Communities
and Others (1)

(Appeal — Decision rejecting complaint — Abuse of a
dominant position — Postal services — Remail)

(2001/C 200/32)

(Language of the case: English)

In Case C-450/98 P: International Express Carriers Conference
(IECC), established in Geneva (Switzerland), represented by
E. Morgan de Rivery, J. Derenne and M. Cunningham, avocats,
appeal against the judgment of the Court of First Instance
of the European Communities (Third Chamber, Extended
Composition) of 16 September 1998 in Joined Cases T-133/95
and T-204/95 IECC v Comission [1998] ECR II-3645, seeking
to have that judgment set aside in so far as it relates to Case T-
204/95 and paragraphs 78 to 83 of Case T-133/95, the other
parties to the proceedings being: Commission of the European
Communities (Agent: K. Wiedner, assisted by N. Forwood),
Deutsche Post AG (avocat: by D. Schroeder), United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The Post Office and La
the Court, composed of: G.C. Rodrı´guez Iglesias,
Poste,
President, A. La Pergola and M. Wathelet
(Presidents of
Chambers), J.-P. Puissochet, P. Jann, L. Sevo´ n, N. Colneric,
S. von Bahr and C.W.A. Timmermans (Rapporteur), Judges;
D. Ruiz-Jarabo Colomer, Advocate General; H. von Holstein,
Deputy Registrar, for the Registrar, has given a judgment on
17 May 2001, in which it:

1. Dismisses the appeal;

2. Orders International Express Carriers Conference (IECC) to pay

the costs.

(1) OJ C 48 of 20.2.1999.