CELEX: C2005/193/33
Language: en
Date: 2005-08-06 00:00:00
Title: Case C-249/05: Action brought on 15 June 2005 by the Commission of the European Communities against the Republic of Finland

6.8.2005   
            
            
               EN
            
            
               Official Journal of the European Union
            
            
               C 193/21
            
         Action brought on 15 June 2005 by the Commission of the European Communities against the Republic of Finland
   (Case C-249/05)
   (2005/C 193/33)
   Language of the case: Finnish
   An action against the Republic of Finland was brought before the Court of Justice of the European Communities on 15 June 2005 by the Commission of the European Communities, represented by D. Triantafyllou and I. Koskinen, acting as Agents, with an address for service in Luxembourg.
   The Commission claims that the Court should:
   
               1.
            
            
               declare that, by imposing an obligation to appoint a tax representative on taxable persons not established in the country who carry out taxable transactions in Finland and are established in another Member State or in the territory of a third country with which a convention has been concluded concerning mutual assistance, the scope of which corresponds to the scope laid down in Council Directive 76/308/EEC of 15 March 1976 on mutual assistance for the recovery of claims relating to certain levies, duties, taxes and other measures (1) and in Council Regulation (EC) No 1798/2003 of 7 October 2003 on administrative cooperation in the field of value added tax and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 218/92, (2) the Republic of Finland has failed to fulfil its obligations under Articles 21 and 22 of the Sixth Council Directive 77/388/EEC of 17 May 1977 (3) and Articles 28 EC and 49 EC;
            
         
               2.
            
            
               order the Republic of Finland to pay the costs.
            
         Pleas in law and main arguments
   Under Article 21(2) of the Sixth VAT Directive 77/388/EEC the Member States may not impose an obligation to appoint a tax representative on an economic operator not established in the country who is established in another Member State. In such cases the appointment of a tax representative is always voluntary for an economic operator not established in the country.
   The Finnish system is as follows in this respect: (a) if the economic operator is a taxable person not established in Finland, the person liable to pay value added tax is the recipient of the supply (‘reversed tax liability’); (b) where an economic operator not established in Finland is given the possibility to register as a taxable person, in that case he is obliged to appoint a tax representative in Finland.
   As regards the appointment of a tax representative, the Finnish system is not in accordance with Community law. The mandatory obligation to appoint a tax representative is contrary to Article 21(2) of the Sixth VAT Directive.
   The Finnish system can give economic operators not established in the country freedom to choose to be registered as taxable persons, but Finland cannot make such a choice conditional on fulfilling a mandatory obligation, of appointing a tax representative, which is contrary to the Sixth VAT Directive and in direct conflict with the aim of Directive 2000/65/EC (4) and in conflict with the principles of the free movement of goods and the freedom to provide services laid down in the EC Treaty.
   
      (1)  OJ L 73 of 19.3.1976, p. 18.
   
      (2)  OJ L 264 of 15.10.2003, p. 1.
   
      (3)  On the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States concerning turnover taxes – Common system of value added tax: uniform basis of assessment, OJ L 145 of 13.6.1977, p. 1.
   
      (4)  Council Directive of 17 October 2000 amending Directive 77/388/EEC as regards the determination of the person liable for payment of value added tax, OJ L 269 of 21.10.2000, p. 44.