Case C-170/04: Judgment of the Court (Grand Chamber) of 5 June 2007 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Högsta domstolen — Sweden) — Klas Rosengren, Bengt Morelli, Hans Särman, Mats Åkerström, Åke Kempe, Anders Kempe, Mats Kempe, Björn Rosengren, Martin Lindberg, Jon Pierre, Tony Staf v Riksåklagaren ( Free movement of goods — Articles 28 EC, 30 EC and 31 EC — National provisions prohibiting the importation of alcoholic beverages by private individuals — Rule relating to the existence and operation of the Swedish monopoly on sales of alcoholic beverages — Assessment — Measure contrary to Article 28 EC — Justification on grounds of protection of the health and life of humans — Review of proportionality) )
Date: 2007-07-21
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: State monopoly, alcoholic beverage, import restriction, interpretation of the law, monopoly, public health, retail selling

C 170/2

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

21.7.2007

V

(Announcements)

COURT PROCEEDINGS

COURT OF JUSTICE

Judgment of the Court (First Chamber) of 7 June 2007 —
the European Communities v Hellenic
Commission of

Republic

(Case C-156/04) (1)

(Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Directive
83/182/EEC — Temporary import of means of transport —
Tax exemptions — Normal residence in a Member State)

(2007/C 170/02)

Language of the case: Greek

Parties

Applicant: Commission of the European Communities (repre-
sented by: M. Patakia and D. Triantafyllou, Agents)

Defendant: Hellenic Republic (represented by: P. Mylonopoulos
and I. Pouli, Agents)

Re:

Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Infringement
of Article 90 EC and of Council Directive 83/182/EEC of
28 March 1983 on tax exemptions within the Community for
certain means of
temporarily imported into one
Member State from another — Temporary use on Greek terri-
tory of vehicles registered in another Member State — Applica-
tion of customs provisions applicable to vehicles from non-
member countries

transport

Operative part of the judgment

The Court:

1. Declares that in laying down:

— in Article 18(C)(1) of Law No 2682/1999 that, where fines
are imposed, vehicles are also to be temporarily immobilised,
and released on payment of the fines and any other charges
owed,

the Hellenic Republic has failed to fulfil
its obligations under
Council Directive 83/182/EEC of 28 March 1983 on tax exemp-
tions within the Community for
transport
temporarily imported into one Member State from another;

certain means of

2. Dismisses the remainder of the action;

3. Orders the Commission of

the European Communities and the

Hellenic Republic to bear their own costs.

(1) OJ C 106, 30.4.2004.

Judgment of the Court (Grand Chamber) of 5 June 2007
(reference for a preliminary ruling from the Högsta
domstolen — Sweden) — Klas Rosengren, Bengt Morelli,
Hans Särman, Mats Åkerström, Åke Kempe, Anders
Kempe, Mats Kempe, Björn Rosengren, Martin Lindberg,
Jon Pierre, Tony Staf v Riksåklagaren

(Case C-170/04) (1)

(Free movement of goods — Articles 28 EC, 30 EC and 31 EC
— National provisions prohibiting the importation of alco-
holic beverages by private individuals — Rule relating to the
existence and operation of the Swedish monopoly on sales of
alcoholic beverages — Assessment — Measure contrary to
Article 28 EC — Justification on grounds of protection of the
health and life of humans — Review of proportionality))

— in Article 18(A)(1) of Law No 2682/1999 that, in the event
of possession or use in Greek territory of a vehicle registered in
another Member State by an individual who has his normal
residence in Greece, the criminal proceedings provided for as a
matter of course will not be brought if the person concerned
pays the registration fee charged and at the same time refrains
from seeking, in relation to the act leading to the imposition of
that fee, the legal remedies provided for under national
law,
and

Referring court

Högsta domstolen

(2007/C 170/03)

Language of the case: Swedish

21.7.2007

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 170/3

Parties to the main proceedings

Judgment of the Court (First Chamber) of 7 June 2007 —
the European Communities v Hellenic
Commission of

Applicants: Klas Rosengren, Bengt Morelli, Hans Särman, Mats
Åkerström, Åke Kempe, Anders Kempe, Mats Kempe, Björn
Rosengren, Martin Lindberg, Jon Pierre, Tony Staf

Defendant: Riksåklagaren

Re:

Reference for a preliminary ruling — Högsta Domstolen —
Interpretation of Articles 28, 30 and 31 EC in the light of
national provisions regarding a national retail monopoly for
retail sales of alcoholic beverages which exclude the direct
import of such beverages by individuals

Republic

(Case C-178/05) (1)

(Failure of a Member
to fulfil obligations — Directive
69/335/EEC — Indirect taxes on the raising of capital —
Capital duty — Exhaustive harmonisation — National legisla-
tion providing for taxation of any transfer of the effective
centre of management or registered office, in so far as the
company concerned is not subject
to capital duty in the
Member State of origin — National legislation under which
agricultural cooperative organisations, and associations or
consortia thereof of any kind, are exempted from the tax —
National
legislation under which co-ownership of vessels,
shipping consortia and any form of shipping company are
exempted from the tax — Prevention of tax avoidance —
Abuse of rights — Limitation of the temporal effects of a
judgment)

(2007/C 170/04)

Language of the case: Greek

Operative part of the judgment

Parties

1. A national provision, such as that in the first subparagraph of
Paragraph 2 of Chapter 4 of the Law on alcohol (alkohollagen) of
16 December 1994, under which private individuals are prohibited
from importing alcoholic beverages must be assessed in the light of
Article 28 EC and not in the light of Article 31 EC.

2. A measure, such as that in the first subparagraph of Paragraph 2
of Chapter 4 of the Law on alcohol, under which private indivi-
duals are prohibited from importing alcoholic beverages amounts to
a quantitative
restriction on imports within the meaning of
Article 28 EC, even though that law requires the holder of the
retail sale monopoly, on request, to supply and therefore, if neces-
sary, to import the beverages in question.

3. A measure, such as that in the first subparagraph of Paragraph 2
of Chapter 4 of the Law on alcohol, under which private indivi-
duals are prohibited from importing alcoholic beverages,

— as it is unsuitable for attaining the objective of limiting alcohol

consumption generally, and

— as

it

is not proportionate

for attaining the objective of
protecting young persons against the harmful effects of such
consumption,

cannot be regarded as being justified under Article 30 EC on
grounds of protection of the health and life of humans.

Applicant: Commission of the European Communities (repre-
sented by: D. Triantafyllou, acting as Agent)

Defendant: Hellenic Republic (represented by: S. Khala and
M. Tassopoulou, acting as Agents)

Intervener in support of the defendant: Kingdom of Spain (repre-
sented by: N. Diaz Abad, acting as Agent)

Re:

taxes on the raising of capital

Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Breach of
Council Directive 69/335/EEC of 17 July 1969 concerning
(OJ, English Special
indirect
Edition 1969 (II), p. 412) — Transfer of a company's effective
centre of management or registered office — Exemption from
capital duty for agricultural cooperatives and shipping compa-
nies

Operative part of the judgment

The Court:

1. Declares that, as a result of its legislation relating to the charging
of capital duty in the event of transfer of the registered office or the
effective centre of management of a company and to the exemption
from that duty of co-ownership of vessels, shipping consortia and
any form of shipping company, the Hellenic Republic has failed to
fulfil
its obligations under Council Directive 69/335/EEC of
17 July 1969 concerning indirect taxes on the raising of capital,
as amended by Council Directive 85/303/EEC of 10 June 1985;

2. Dismisses the action as to the remainder;

3. Orders the Hellenic Republic to pay the costs.

(1) OJ C 156, 12.6.2004.

(1) OJ C 155, 25.6.2005.