CELEX: C1996/133/13
Language: en
Date: 1996-05-04 00:00:00
Title: JUDGMENT OF THE COURT (Fifth Chamber) of 29 February 1996 in Case C-110/94 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Rechtbank van Eerste Aanleg, Bruges): Intercommunale voor Zeewaterontzilting (INZO) v. Belgian State (VAT - Concept of economic activity - Status of taxable person - Activity confined to a profitability study for a project, followed by the abandonment of the project)

4 . 5 . 96             EN                   Official Journal of the European Communities                                No C 133 /7
Northern Ireland ( Agent: John D. Colahan, assisted by                 turnover taxes — Common system of value added tax :
Eleanor Sharpston, Barrister ), applications for the                   uniform basis of assessment ( OJ No L 145 , 1977, p . 1 ) — the
annulment of Commission Regulation ( EEC ) No 685/93 of                Court ( Fifth Chamber ), composed of D. A. O. Edward,
24 March 1993 amending Regulation ( EEC ) No 859/89                    President of the Chamber, J. -P. Puissochet, J. C. Moitinho
laying down detailed rules for the application of general and          de Almeida , C. Gulmann ( Rapporteur ), and L. Sevon,
special intervention measures in the beef and veal sector ( OJ         Judges; C. O. Lenz, Advocate-General ; D. Louterman­
No L 73 , 1993 , p . 9 ) — the Court ( Fifth Chamber ),                Hubeau, Principal Administrator, for the Registrar, has
composed of D. A. O. Edward , President of the Chamber,                given a judgment on 29 February 1996 , in which it
J. -P. Puissochet, J. C. Moitinho de Almeida ( Rapporteur ),           rules :
C. Gulmann and L. Sevôn, Judges; C. O. Lenz,
Advocate-General ; D. Louterman-Hubeau , Principal
Administrator, for the Registrar, gave a judgment on                   Article 4 of the Sixth Council Directive 77/388/EEC of
29 February 1996 , in which it:                                        17 May 1977 on the harmonization of the laws of the
                                                                       Member States relating to turnover taxes — Common
                                                                       system of value added tax : uniform basis ofassessment must
1 , dismisses the applications;                                        be interpreted as meaning that where the tax authority has
                                                                       accepted that a company which has declared an intention to
                                                                       commence an economic activity giving rise to taxable
2 , order the French Republic and Ireland to pay the costs,            transactions has the status of a taxable person for the
      including those of the interim proceedings;                      purposes of VAT, the commissioning ofa profitability study
                                                                       in respect of the envisaged activity may be regarded as an
                                                                       economic activity within the meaning of that Article, even if
3 , orders the United Kingdom of Great Britain and                     the purpose of that study is to investigate to what degree the
      Northern Ireland to bear its own costs .                         activity envisaged is profitable, and that except in cases of
                                                                       fraud or abuse, the status of taxable person for the purpose
                                                                       of VAT may not be withdrawn from that company
(') OJ No C 184 , 7 . 7 . 1993 .
     OJ No C 203 , 27 . 7 . 1993 .                                     retroactively where, in view ofthe results ofthat study, it has
                                                                       been decided not to move to the operational phase, but to
                                                                       put the company into liquidation with the result that the
                                                                       economic activity envisaged has not given rise to taxable
                                                                       transactions .
                                                                       C ) OJ No C 132 , 14 . 5 . 1994 .
                JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
                         ( Fifth Chamber )
                      of 29 February 1996
in Case C-l 10/94 ( reference for a preliminary ruling
from the Rechtbank van Eerste Aanleg, Bruges ):                                       JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
Intercommunale voor Zeewaterontzilting ( INZO ) v.                                         of 29 February 1996
                          Belgian State (')
                                                                            in Case C-122/94: Commission of the European
( VAT — Concept of economic activity — Status of taxable                    Community v. Council of the European Union ( 1 )
person — Activity confined to a profitability study for a
    project, followed by the abandonment of the project)                        (Common agricultural policy — State aid)
                           ( 96/C 133/ 13 )                                                      ( 96/C 133/ 14 )
                                                                                       (Language of the case: French)
                 (Language of the case: Dutch)
                                                                       (Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be
(Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be                    published in the European Court Reports)
           published in the European Court Reports)
                                                                       In Case C-122/94 : Commission of the European
In Case C- 1 10/94 : reference to the Court under Article 177          Communities ( Agents : Xenophon Yataganas and Ben
of the EC Treaty from the Rechtbank van Eerste Aanleg                  Smulders ) v . Council of the European Union ( Agents :
( Court of First Instance ), Bruges ( Belgium ), for a                 Ramon Torrent and Diego Canga Fano ) supported by
preliminary ruling in the proceedings pending before that              French Republic ( Agents : Catherine de Salins and
court between Intercommunale voor Zeewaterontzilting                   Jean-Louis Falconi ) and by the Italian Republic ( Agent:
( INZO ), in liquidation, and Belgian State — on the                   Professor Luigi Ferrari Bravo ) — application for annulment
interpretation of Article 4(1 ) and ( 2 ) of the Sixth Council         of two Council Decisions of 21 February 1994 under the
Directive 77/388/EEC of 17 May 1977 on the                             third subparagraph of Article 93 ( 2 ) of the EC Treaty
harmonization of the laws of the Member States relating to             relating to the grant of special aid for the distillation of