Case C-734/22, Finanzprokuratur: Judgment of the Court (Eighth Chamber) of 8 May 2024 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Oberster Gerichtshof - Austria) -Republik Österreich v GM (Reference for a preliminary ruling – Own resources of the European Union – National programme co-financed by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) – Aid granted by contract pursuant to that programme – Protection of the European Union’s financial interests – Regulation (EC) No 2988/95 – Scope – Proceedings concerning irregularities – Article 3 – Limitation period for proceedings – Concept of act interrupting the limitation period – Principle of proportionality – Claims for repayment of aid wrongly paid, based on the private law of a Member State)
Date: 2024-05-08
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: State aid, aid to agriculture, contract, control of State aid, limitation of legal proceedings, principle of proportionality, reimbursement of aid, rural development








C_202403724EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
C series













C/2024/3724


24.6.2024






Judgment of the Court (Eighth Chamber) of 8 May 2024 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Oberster Gerichtshof - Austria) -Republik Österreich v GM


(Case C-734/22,
                (1)
Finanzprokuratur)

(Reference for a preliminary ruling - Own resources of the European Union - National programme co-financed by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) - Aid granted by contract pursuant to that programme - Protection of the European Union’s financial interests - Regulation (EC) No 2988/95 - Scope - Proceedings concerning irregularities - Article 3 - Limitation period for proceedings - Concept of ‘act interrupting the limitation period’ - Principle of proportionality - Claims for repayment of aid wrongly paid, based on the private law of a Member State)
(C/2024/3724)
Language of the case: German

Referring court

Oberster Gerichtshof

Parties to the main proceedings


Appellant: Republik Österreich

Respondent: GM

Operative part of the judgment









1.


The first subparagraph of Article 3(1) of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2988/95 of 18 December 1995 on the protection of the European Communities[’] financial interests
must be interpreted as meaning that the four-year limitation period which it lays down is directly applicable to a claim for repayment of aid, co-financed by the European Union, which is governed by the provisions of private law of a Member State.












2.


The principle of proportionality
must be interpreted as precluding the application, on the basis of Article 3(3) of Regulation No 2988/95, of a 30-year limitation period, established by a provision of private law of a Member State, to claims for repayment of aid co-financed by the European Union.












3.


The third subparagraph of Article 3(1) of Regulation No 2988/95
must be interpreted as meaning that the concept of an ‘act relating to investigation or legal proceedings concerning the irregularity’ from the competent authority and notified to the person in question, the effect of which is to interrupt the ‘limitation period for proceedings’, covers extrajudicial acts such as an audit report, a recovery notice, a payment reminder or a formal notice, provided that those acts enable the addressee to have knowledge, with sufficient precision, of the transactions to which the suspicions of irregularities relate.






(1)  
            OJ C 94, 13.3.2023.


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2024/3724/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)