CELEX: 62011CA0387
Language: en
Date: 2012-10-25 00:00:00
Title: Case C-387/11: Judgment of the Court (First Chamber) of 25 October 2012 — European Commission v Kingdom of Belgium (Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Articles 49 TFEU and 63 TFEU — Articles 31 and 40 of the EEA Agreement — Taxation of income from capital and immovable property — Resident and non-resident investment companies — Withholding tax — Setting off of withholding tax — Exemption of income from capital and movable property — Discrimination — Justifications)

22.12.2012   
            
            
               EN
            
            
               Official Journal of the European Union
            
            
               C 399/6
            
         Judgment of the Court (First Chamber) of 25 October 2012 — European Commission v Kingdom of Belgium
   (Case C-387/11) (1)
   
   (Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations - Articles 49 TFEU and 63 TFEU - Articles 31 and 40 of the EEA Agreement - Taxation of income from capital and immovable property - Resident and non-resident investment companies - Withholding tax - Setting off of withholding tax - Exemption of income from capital and movable property - Discrimination - Justifications)
   2012/C 399/09
   Language of the case: French
   
      Parties
   
   
      Applicant: European Commission (represented by: W. Mölls and C. Soulay, Agents)
   
      Defendant: Kingdom of Belgium (represented by: J.-C. Halleux and M. Jacobs, Agents)
   
      Intervener in support of the defendant: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (represented by: S. Behzadi-Spencer, Agent)
   
      Re:
   
   Failure of a Member State to fulfil its obligations — Infringement of Articles 49 and 63 TFUE and Articles 31 and 40 of the European Economic Area Agreement — Taxation of income from capital and immovable property — Exemption for investment companies — National legislation providing for a withholding tax on income from capital and immovable property (‘précompte mobilier’) — Discrimination against foreign investment companies which do not have a fixed establishment in the national territory inasmuch as they are not permitted to recover the amount paid by way of withholding tax — Lack of justification
   
      Operative part of the judgment
   
   The Court:
   
               1.
            
            
               Declares that, by maintaining different rules for the taxation of income from capital and movable property according to whether it is earned by resident investment companies or non-resident investment companies with no permanent establishment in Belgium, the Kingdom of Belgium has failed to fulfil its obligations under Articles 49 TFEU and 63 TFEU, and Articles 31 and 40 of the Agreement on the European Economic Area of 2 May 1992;
            
         
               2.
            
            
               Orders the Kingdom of Belgium to pay the costs;
            
         
               3.
            
            
               Orders the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to bear its own costs.
            
         
      (1)  OJ C 305, 15.10.2011.