Case C-697/20: Judgment of the Court (Sixth Chamber) of 24 March 2022 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Naczelny Sąd Administracyjny — Poland) — W.G. v Dyrektor Izby Skarbowej w L. (Reference for a preliminary ruling — Taxation — Value added tax (VAT) — Directive 2006/112/EC — Article 9 — Taxable person — Articles 295 and 296 — Flat-rate scheme for farmers — Spouses engaged in an agricultural activity using property forming part of the marital community of property — Possibility for those spouses to be regarded as separate taxable persons for VAT purposes — Choice on the part of one of the spouses to give up flat-rate farmer status and to bring her activity under the normal VAT arrangements — Loss of flat-rate farmer status for the other spouse)
Date: 2022-03-24
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: VAT, division of property, economic activity, farmer, farming sector, flat-rate tax, joint ownership, married person, taxpayer








C_2022198EN.01000801.xml










16.5.2022   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 198/8






Judgment of the Court (Sixth Chamber) of 24 March 2022 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Naczelny Sąd Administracyjny — Poland) — W.G. v Dyrektor Izby Skarbowej w L.
(Case C-697/20) (1)

(Reference for a preliminary ruling - Taxation - Value added tax (VAT) - Directive 2006/112/EC - Article 9 - Taxable person - Articles 295 and 296 - Flat-rate scheme for farmers - Spouses engaged in an agricultural activity using property forming part of the marital community of property - Possibility for those spouses to be regarded as separate taxable persons for VAT purposes - Choice on the part of one of the spouses to give up flat-rate farmer status and to bring her activity under the normal VAT arrangements - Loss of flat-rate farmer status for the other spouse)
(2022/C 198/11)
Language of the case: Polish

Referring court

Naczelny Sąd Administracyjny

Parties to the main proceedings


Applicant: W.G.

Defendant: Dyrektor Izby Skarbowej w L.

Operative part of the judgment

Articles 9, 295 and 296 of Council Directive 2006/112/EC of 28 November 2006 on the common system of value added tax must be interpreted as:






—


precluding a practice of a Member State which prohibits spouses carrying out an agricultural activity in the same holding, using property forming part of the marital community of property, from being regarded as separate taxable persons for value added tax (VAT) purposes where each of those spouses carries out an economic activity independently;










—


not precluding, in circumstances in which spouses carry out that agricultural activity under the flat-rate scheme for farmers, the choice of one spouse to place her activity under the normal VAT arrangements from resulting in the other spouse losing the status of flat-rate farmer, where, after examination of the specific situation, such an effect is necessary in order to counter the risk of abuse and tax evasion which cannot be addressed by the spouses’ production of appropriate evidence, or where the carrying out of that activity by those spouses, independently and each under the normal VAT arrangements, is not likely to give rise to administrative difficulties, compared with a situation entailing the simultaneous existence of two different statuses for those spouses.






(1)  OJ C 182, 10.5.2021.