CELEX: 51980PC0308
Language: en
Date: 1980-06-09
Title: Amendments to the proposal for a Fifth Council Directive on the harmonization of provisions laid down by law, regulation or administrative action relating to the rules governing turnover tax and excise duty applicable in international travel (Submitted by the Commission to the Council pursuant to the second paragraph of Article 149 of the EEC Treaty)

ARCHIVES HISTORIQUES
DE LA COMMISSION
COLLECTION RELIEE DES
DOCUMENTS "COM"
COM (80) 308
Vol. 1980/0110
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 ---pagebreak--- COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                                      COM(80)308 final
                                                      Brussels - 9 June 1980
          Amendments to the proposal for a Fifth Council Directive
       on the harmonization of provisions laid down by law , regulation
       or administrative action relating to the rules governing turn­
       over tax and excise duty applicable in international travel
       ( Submitted by the Commission to the Council pursuant to the
         second paragraph of Article 149 of the EEC Treaty )
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C0M(80 ) 308 final
 ---pagebreak---                                         PYPI ANATQRY MEMORANDUM.
1 . Ona Fifth
           30 November     1979, the Commission Lai£ b.efore^thesC°^^^nPby
                   Directive on the harmonizatio           P     th ru les governing .
                                                                                          Lav,
     Peculation or administrative                                            travel ,
      turnover tax and excise duty applicable in intern                                     ^
      The Economic and Social                           January" 1980 and -18 April 1980
      proposal and gave their opinions on 30 January
      respecti vely .                -                                                 .... „ n 4
                                                                             + hp addition of
 2. Both gave an opinion in f                    ^"commissior^eadUy endorses, subject 1:0
 •. amendment°ofPthe arrangements 'for reducing the derogations granted
       Denmark and Ireland .
       - the concern       :
                  date of entry   Into *>«. of the provisions,. contained
                                                                       .           -in the
                                                                                   in th
            initial proposal ;     "                                             ,           a
       - a gradual increase in intra-Comn.uni.ty allowances on t e
            precise                    o he auantUati „e u „1ts applying to tea and ■
        " ! 1rf eeU in           within the community and an increase in the limit
             I ©>
                                         iU i i.u c      hv which Mcfnbsr St3t6S rnu-st
   4- iJnplemen^theHprov^sions of the initia^proposa. . should be .1 July 1980.
   ~ -u .               of this date , falling just before the start of the summer
       •Kecrriays^'wiU clearly help to attain the psychological and
         objective of the Council Directives , namely to max e the pe ps.
         Member States more aware of the tanaible benefits of the common market .
   5 . Like Parliament , the Commission feels that there should be a programme <
         for increasing int ^-Community allowances within reasonable l^us during
        the next few years . '                        ^                    .
         iiie principle of this type of programmes affords not inconsiderable
        advantages :
        - it will ensure an appreciable increase in tax-free allowances while
            requiring only a gradual effort from Member States ;
        - it will allow the national authorities to prepare the administrative'
             implementing decisions in good time ; ■ ;                   -
        - it is Likely to simplify the work of all the Community institutions
             concerned ( Commission , Economic and Social Committee , Parliament ) by
             making it unnecessary for them to express an opinion on each increase,
             whose effects will be limited . Experience with the proposal , which
             the Council was prevented from discussing in sood time because the
              Economic and Social Committee and Parliament had not delivered their
             opinions , shows the advantage of laying down a medium-term programme
             of increases .
                                                                                   ./
 ---pagebreak---  The programme is as follows
   Date of entry i Allowance for    Allowance for  Derogation granted in respect
    into     force    travellers of travellers of  of the unit value of goods
                      15 years of   less than 15
                      age or older  years of age        Denmark      Ireland
    1.7.1980            210 ECU     . 60 ECU           160 ECU       100 ECU
    1.1.1981            250 ECU       70 ECU          200 ECU        140 ECU
    1.1.1982            300 ECU       85 ECU          250 ECU        200 ECU
                    i
                                                                 < 250 ECU from
                                                                    1.1.1983 )
The Commission believes that the gradual effort thus required of Member States
is perfectly feasible in the light of the overall economic situation . In line
with the wishes of Parliament , the increase proposed at each stage of the
programme ( 1.7.1980 , 1.1.1981 and 1.1.1982 ) is of the order of 20 % compared
with the amount previously in force . Due allowance being made         nrice rises
between 1.1.1979 ( the date when the allowances were last increased-
1.1.1982 , the effort required from Member States in real terms would nCt:
excessive .
 In addition , a special effort must be made to gradual ly align the derogations
granted to Denmark and Ireland relating to the unit value of goods with the
 full tax-free allowance .
 The quantitative allowances provided for in Article 4(1 ) of Directive
 69 / 169 / EEC are justified by the high level of excise duties applicable to the
 goods listed in that Article . The Commission notes that only a f ew Member
  States charge excise duty on tea and coffee . It takes the view that , in
  intra-Community travel at least , this allowance can be gradually abolished .
  Such abolition , which would not entail any real harmful effects for either
  the economies or the tax revenues of the Member States , would make it possi­
  ble to simplify the application of national provisions relating to tax-free
   allowances .
 ---pagebreak---                                                   - 3 -
                   Amendments to the proposal for a Fifth Council Directive
                   on the harmonization of provisions laid down by law , re­
                   gulation or administrative action relating to the rules
                   governing turnover tax and excise duty applicable in in­
                                         ternational travel
                   ( Submitted by the Commission to the Council pursuant to
                   the second paragraph of Article 149 of the EEC Treaty )
        The Commission hereby amends its proposal as follows :
   - The following recital shall be added :
        Whereas the quantitative limits for coffee and tea laid down in
        Article 4(1)(d ) and ( e ) of the abovementioned Directive 69 / 169/ EEC tend to
        give rise to formalities at frontiers ; whereas any taxes charged can pro­
        duce only a small amount of tax revenue ; whereas provision should therefore
        be made for the gradual abolition of these quantitative limits in travel
        between Member States .
   - Articles 1 and 2 shall be replaced by the following Articles : '
     -  •                                                        '
                                                Article 1
                   l        *              ■ -     •'          '            -              f ' :
                Article 2 of Directive 69/ 169/ EEC is hereby amended as follows : .
   a ) In paragraphs 1 and 3, " 180 European units of account " shall be replaced
          by :
               ~ " 210 ECU" with effect from 1 July 1980;,
                  " 250 ECU" with effect from 1 January 1981 ;
                 " 300 ECU" with effect from 1 January 1982 .                          ^
  b ) In paragraph 2, " 50 European units of account " shall be replaced by :
                 " 60 ECU" with effect from 1 July 1980;                             ^
                 " 70 ECU" with effect from 1 January 1981 ;                   v
              - " 85 ECU" with effect from 1 January 1982 .
                                               Article 2                          ,
               Article 4 of Directive" 69/ 169/ EEC is hereby amended as follows :
 a ) With effect from 1 July 1980 :
       - in paragraph 1(b ), second indent ,                     " to a total of 4 litres "
            in column headed " Travel between Member States " shall be replaced by
             to a total of 5     litres ".
       - in paragraph 1(d) headed 'coffee or coffee extracts and essences ", "750 g "
           and " 300 g " in column II headed " Travel between Member • States " shall be
           replaced by '1 000 g " and "400 g ,r respectively;
      7 in paragraph 1(e ) headed " tea or tea extracts and essences''^ " 150 g " and '60 "
           in column II headed " Travel between Member States " shall be replaced by "2nn 9-
          and " 80 g" respectively .                  •  • '                             7       9
b ) With effect from 1 January 1982, in paragraph 1 the headings d ) " coffee
     or coffee extracts and essences" and e ) " tea or tea extracts and essences "
                                                                                  ./.  .
                                                             I
 ---pagebreak---                                          - Λ _
   in column II headed      Travel between Member States " shall be deleted .
                                       Article 3
   Directive 78 / 1032 / EEC is amended as follows :
' 1 . Article 5(1 ) shall be replaced by the following :
   " By way of derogation from article 2(1 ) of Directive 69/ 169/ EEC
      ( a ) the Kingdom of Denmark may exclude from tax exemption goods whose unit
            value exceeds :
            - until 31 December  1980 - 160 ECU ;
            - between 1 January  1981 and 31 December 1981 , 200 ECU;
            - bet ween 1 January 1982 and 31 December 1983, 250 ECU .
      ( b ) Ireland may exclude  from tax exemption goods whose unit value exceeds :
            - until 31 December 1980, 100 ECU;                      ,.             v
                                                     . 4004  A t.f\    cr IL »
            - between 1 January 1981 and 31 December 1981 , 140 ECU;
            - between 1 January 1982 and 31 December 1982 , 200 ECU ;
            - between 1 January 1983 and 31 December 1983, 250 ECU .
   2 . In Article 5(3 ), " three litres " shall be replaced by " four litres .
- Article 3 shall become Article 4
- Article 4 shall be renumbered Article 5 and in paragraph i i'ft-roof the
   words " with effect from 1 January 1980" shall be deleted .
 - Article 5 shall be renumbered Article 6 .