Case T-596/24, CIT Coin Invest: Request for a preliminary ruling from the Verwaltungsgerichtshof (Austria) lodged on 8 November 2024 – CIT Coin Invest AG v Zollamt Österreich
Date: 2024-11-08
Institutions: General Court
Subjects: VAT, claim, gold, import (EU), issuing of currency, money, national law, public sector, tax exemption








C_202500405EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
C series













C/2025/405


27.1.2025






Request for a preliminary ruling from the Verwaltungsgerichtshof (Austria) lodged on 8 November 2024 – CIT Coin Invest AG v Zollamt Österreich


(Case T-596/24, CIT Coin Invest)

(C/2025/405)
Language of the case: German

Referring court

Verwaltungsgerichtshof

Parties to the main proceedings


Appellant on a point of law: CIT Coin Invest AG

Respondent authority: Zollamt Österreich

Questions referred







1.


Are Articles 345 and 346 of Council Directive 2006/112/EC (1) to be interpreted as meaning that gold coins included in the list published annually by the Commission in the Official Journal of the European Union are always deemed to meet the criteria laid down in Article 344 of Directive 2006/112/EC and are therefore deemed to be coins covered by the tax exemption provided for in Article 346 of Directive 2006/112/EC, even if those gold coins did not meet the criteria laid down in Article 344 of Directive 2006/112/EC when they were imported?










2.


Is it relevant to the answer to Question 1 that those gold coins did not meet the criteria laid down in Article 344 of Directive 2006/112/EC when they were first issued?










3.


Is Article 345 of Directive 2006/112/EC to be interpreted as meaning that gold coins are deemed to be included in the list published annually by the Commission in the Official Journal of the European Union if they have a corresponding face value as stated in that list, even if those gold coins did not meet the criteria laid down in Article 344 of Directive 2006/112/EC when they were first issued?










4.


Is it relevant to the answer to Question 3 that those gold coins did not meet the criteria laid down in Article 344 of Directive 2006/112/EC when the aforementioned list was published?










5.


Is Article 345 of Directive 2006/112/EC to be interpreted as meaning that gold coins are deemed to be included in the list published annually by the Commission in the Official Journal of the European Union if they have a corresponding face value as stated in that list and they meet the criteria laid in Article 344 of Directive 2006/112/EC but are minted (and issued) only after publication of the list and do not constitute further issues of gold coins already expressly stated in the list?










6.


Is point (2) of Article 344(1) of Directive 2006/112/EC to be interpreted as meaning that gold coins are to be regarded as legal tender in their country of origin within the meaning of that provision if, on the basis of national statutory provisions, they must be accepted at face value only by public-sector cash offices and by the company in which the public authorities hold a majority interest that minted and issued those gold coins, but not by all creditors in regular payment transactions?






(1)  Council Directive 2006/112/EC of 28 November 2006 on the common system of value added tax (OJ 2006 L 347, p. 1).


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2025/405/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)