2002/888/EC: Council Decision of 5 November 2002 authorising Germany and France to apply a measure derogating from Article 3 of Directive 77/388/EEC on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to turnover taxes
Date: 2002-11-05
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: France, Germany, derogation from EU law, engineering structure, frontier region, maintenance, tax harmonisation, territorial law

14.11.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

L 311/13

II

(Acts whose publication is not obligatory)

COUNCIL

COUNCIL DECISION

of 5 November 2002

authorising Germany and France to apply a measure derogating from Article 3 of Directive 77/
388/EEC on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to turnover taxes

(2002/888/EC)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

Having regard to the 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, and in particular Article
27(1) thereof (1),

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (2),

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

sent

By two requests
to the Commission on 28
December 2001 and 7 January 2002 respectively,
Germany and France sought authorisation to apply a
measure derogating from Article 3 of Directive 77/388/
EEC in respect of the construction and maintenance of
certain cross-border bridges on the Rhine.

By letter of 25 February 2002 the Commission asked the
German and French authorities to give further informa-
tion on the scope of the derogation.

The German authorities gave the Commission the
supplementary information requested in a letter of 19
June 2002, endorsed by the French authorities, which
was registered by the Commission's Secretariat-General
on 22 July 2002.

The other Member States were informed of Germany
and France's request and the supplementary information
by letter dated 31 July 2002.

(5)

(6)

(7)

(8)

The cross-border bridges on the Rhine concerned by this
measure are bridges which will be built in future to link
up with public highways not
the
network of motorways and trunk roads in France and
with public highways not forming part of the Federal
trunk road network in Germany.

forming part of

The derogation sought by Germany and France consists
in deeming that, for the construction and maintenance
of cross-border bridges on the Rhine,
the territorial
boundary between Germany and France lies in the
middle of each bridge.

In the absence of a specific measure, the place of taxa-
tion of construction and maintenance work on the
cross-border bridges would be dictated by the geogra-
phical
territorial boundary between the two Member
States, which runs where the river is deepest. This
boundary is difficult in practice to determine and also
changes over time. The VAT arrangements applicable to
construction and maintenance work on the cross-border
bridges would be therefore be extremely complex for the
operators carrying it out.

The derogation requested, which fixes the territorial
boundary between Germany and France in the middle of
the
therefore
simplify the collection of VAT on the construction and
maintenance of these bridges.

cross-border bridges

concerned, will

(1) OJ L 145, 13.6.1977, p. 1. Directive as last amended by Directive

2002/38/EC (OJ L 128, 15.5.2002, p. 41).

(2) Proposal of 11 September 2002 (not yet published in the Official

Journal).

(9)

The derogation will not reduce the taxable amount for
VAT. It therefore does not adversely affect the Commu-
nities' own resources from VAT,

L 311/14

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

14.11.2002

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

By way of derogation from Article 3 of Directive 77/388/EEC
Germany and France are hereby authorised, in the case of the
cross-border bridges on the Rhine referred to in Article 2, to
set
the territorial boundary between the two States in the
middle of the bridges concerned as the place of taxation for the
supply of goods and services,
intra-Community acquisitions
and imports of goods for the construction and maintenance of
these bridges,
including winter maintenance and regular
cleaning.

Article 2

The cross-border bridges on the Rhine to which this Decision
applies are those to be built in future which will link up with

public highways not forming part of the network of motorways
and trunk roads in France and with public highways not
forming part of the Federal trunk road network in Germany.

Article 3

This Decision is addressed to the Federal Republic of Germany
and the French Republic.

Done at Brussels, 5 November 2002.

For the Council

The President

T. PEDERSEN