CELEX: C1998/340/05
Language: en
Date: 1998-11-07 00:00:00
Title: JUDGMENT OF THE COURT (Fifth Chamber) of 24 September 1998 in Case C-413/96 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Højesteret): Skatteministeriet v. Sportgoods A/S (Customs duty - Constitution of a customs debt - Post-clearance recovery of import duties - Remission of import duties)

7.11.98                EN                  Official Journal of the European Communities                                      C 340/3
2. A Member State whose authorities, in interpreting                       indicated in a declaration for release into free
     Articles 3(1) and 4(1) of the Second Directive 79/32/                 circulation, and where the levying of customs duties
     EEC, erroneously classified a product such as that at                 on products covered by the heading under which those
     issue in this case as a cigarette and did not suspend the             goods ought to have been classified was suspended at
     operation of the decision adopted, is not bound by                    the date on which that declaration was accepted but
     Community law to compensate the manufacturer for                      had been re-established when the error was detected,
     the damage sustained by the latter as a result of that                the customs authorities must not take account of that
     erroneous decision.                                                   suspension in order to recalculate the amount of the
                                                                           customs duties legally due on the date on which the
                                                                           declaration was accepted.
(1) OJ C 354 of 23.11.1996.
                                                                      2. When the Commission, after consultation with the
                                                                           Customs Code Committee, has delivered a decision
                                                                           addressed to a Member State holding that there was,
                                                                           in a specific case, no justification for granting
                                                                           remission of import duties pursuant to the provisions
               JUDGMENT OF THE COURT                                       of Council Regulation (EEC) No 1430/79 of 2 July
                        (Fifth Chamber)                                    1979 on the repayment or remission of import or
                                                                           export duties, and when that decision does not contain
                     of 24 September 1998                                  any legal or factual indication relating to the legal
                                                                           basis for effecting post-clearance recovery of the
in Case C-413/96 (reference for a preliminary ruling from
                                                                           import duties concerned under Regulation No 1697/
   the Hùjesteret): Skatteministeriet v. Sportgoods A/S (1)
                                                                           79, a national court may rule on the latter question,
(Customs duty Ð Constitution of a customs debt Ð Post-                     having recourse, if appropriate, to the procedure under
clearance recovery of import duties Ð Remission of                         Article 177 of the EC Treaty.
                         import duties)
                         (98/C 340/05)                                (1) OJ C 74 of 8.3.1997.
                (Language of the case: Danish)
  (Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be                       JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
          published in the European Court Reports)
                                                                                              (Fifth Chamber)
                                                                                          of 24 September 1998
In Case C-413/96: reference to the Court under Article 177
of the EC Treaty from the Hùjesteret (Danish Supreme                  in    Case    C-35/97: Commission of the             European
Court) for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings pending                          Communities v. French Republic (1)
before that court between Skatteministeriet and
Sportgoods A/S Ð on the interpretation of Article 2(1) of
                                                                      (Failure to fulfil obligations Ð Article 48 of the EC Treaty
Council Regulation (EEC) No 1697/79 of 24 July 1979 on
                                                                      Ð Unemployment benefits Ð Award of supplementary
                                                                      retirement pension points Ð Conditions of dismissal Ð
the post-clearance recovery of import duties or export
duties which have not been required of the person liable
                                                                      Article 7 of Regulation (EEC) No 1612/68 Ð Frontier
for payment on goods entered for a customs procedure
                                                                                                  workers)
involving the obligation to pay such duties (OJ L 197 of                                       (98/C 340/06)
3.8.1979, p. 1) and on the legal effect of a decision
delivered by the Commission following consultation with
the Customs Code Committee Ð the Court (Fifth                                         (Language of the case: French)
Chamber), composed of: C. Gulmann, President of the
Chamber, M. Wathelet, J. C. Moitinho de Almeida,
D. A. O. Edward (Rapporteur) and L. Sevón, Judges; S.                   (Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be
Alber, Advocate General; R. Grass, Registrar, has given a                       published in the European Court Reports)
judgment on 24 September 1998, in which it has ruled:
                                                                      In Case C-35/97: Commission of the European
1. Article 2(1) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 1697/79                Communities (Agents: Pieter Jan Kuyper and Pieter van
     of 24 July 1979 on the post-clearance recovery of                Nuffel) v. French Republic (Agents: Kareen Rispal-
     import duties or export duties which have not been               Bellanger and Claude Chavance) Ð application for a
     required of the person liable for payment on goods               declaration that, by excluding frontier workers residing in
     entered for a customs procedure involving the                    Belgium from qualifying for supplementary retirement
     obligation to pay such duties must be construed as               pension points after being placed in early retirement, the
     meaning that, where a post-clearance inspection has              French Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under
     revealed an error in the tariff classification of goods          Article 48(2) of the EC Treaty and Article 7 of Regulation