CELEX: 51991PC0157
Language: en
Date: 1991-05-02
Title: AMENDMENT TO THE PROPOSAL FOR A COUNCIL DIRECTIVE SUPPLEMENTING THE COMMON SYSTEM OF VALUE ADDED TAX ( VAT ) AND AMENDING DIRECTIVE 77/388/EEC: ABOLITION OF TAX FRONTIERS AND TRANSITIONAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR TAXATION WITH A VIEW TO ESTABLISHMENT OF THE INTERNAL MARKET

22. 5. 91                                Official Journal of the European Communities                              N o C 131/3
                                                                II
                                                        (Preparatory Acts)
                                                   COMMISSION
               Amendment to the proposal for a Council Directive supplementing the common system of value
               added tax (VAT) and amending Directive 77/388/EEC — Abolition of tax frontiers and tran-
                    sitional arrangements for taxation with a view to establishment of the internal market
                                                         (91/C 131/03)
                                                       COM(91) 157 final
                  (Submitted by the Commission pursuant to Article 149 (3) of the EEC Treaty on 2 May 1991)
The Commission hereby amends its amended proposal as                       regional problems arising, notably in trans-
follows:                                                                   frontier regions, from the abolition of tax
                                                                           frontiers;'
1. The following recitals are inserted between the fourth
   and fifth recitals:                                                 (f) the fifth recital reading:
                                                                           'Whereas,      consequently,   Council      Directive
                                                                           77/388/EEC, as last amended by the Act of
    (a) the following fifth recital is added:                              Accession of Spain and Portugal, should be
                                                                           amended, and the Directives dealing with
         'Whereas the Member States have undertaken to
                                                                           exemption at importation should be modified;'
         abolish all restrictions on travellers' purchases by
         1 January 1993;'                                                  becomes the tenth recital.
   (b) the following sixth recital is added:                        2. Article 1 is amended as follows:
        "Whereas the Member States have already
        undertaken to bring about a convergence of VAT
        rates applicable from 1 January 1993;'                         (a) A new point 2 is added after point 1:
                                                                           '2. At the end of the second subparagraph of
   (c) the following seventh recital is added:
                                                                               Article 4 (5), "significant" is deleted from
        'Whereas an equitable clearing-house system must                       "where treatment as non-taxable persons
        also be set up when definitive arrangements are                        would lead to significant distortions of compe-
        introduced;'                                                           tition".'
   (d) the following eight recital is added:                               Point 2 becomes point 3.
        'Whereas, while attempts must be made to ease
                                                                           Point 3 becomes point 4.
        the administrative and statistical formalities that
        have to be completed by firms, efforts are also                    Point 4 becomes point 5.
        needed for both economic and tax reasons to
        maintain the quality of the Community's statistical                Point 5 becomes point 6.
        machinery;'
                                                                           Point 6 becomes point 7.
                                                                           Point 7 becomes point 8.
   (e) the following ninth recital is added:
        'Whereas the transitional period must be used to                   Point 8 becomes point 9.
        take measures to "offset the social repercussions in
        the occupations concerned and to prevent                           Point 9 becomes point 10.
 ---pagebreak--- N o C 131/4                           Official Journal of the European Communities                                   22. 5. 91
       Point 10 becomes po nt 11.                                                  day on which        this   Directive      is
       Point 11 becomes po nt 12.                                                  adopted".'
       Point 12 becomes po nt 13.
                                                                3. Article 2 is amended as follows:
       Point 13 becomes po nt 14.
       Point 14 becomes po nt 15.                                  (a) The introductory part of Article 2 which reads:
       Point 15 becomes po nt 16.                                       'Article 28 of Directive 77/388/EEC is hereby
                                                                        replaced by the following:' is replaced by the
       Point 16 becomes po nt 17.                                       following:
       Point 17 becomes po nt 18.                                       'Article 28 of Directive 77/388/EEC, with the
       Point 18 becomes po nt 19.                                       exception of paragraph 2, which will continue to
                                                                        apply until the Council unanimously adopts, on a
       Point 19 becomes po n t 2 0 .
                                                                        proposal from the Commission, provisions
       Point 20 becomes po n t 2 1 .                                    relating to the approximation of VAT rates, and
       Point 21 becomes po n t 2 2 .                                   with the exception of paragraph 3 as amended by
                                                                        Directive 89/465/EEC ('), which will continue to
       Point 22 becomes po n t 2 3 .                                    apply until the Council unanimously adopts, on a
       Point 23 becomes po n t 2 4 .                                   proposal from       the Commission,         definitive
                                                                        arrangements for the derogations concerned here,
       Point 24 becomes po n t 2 5 .
                                                                       subject, however, to deletion of the words
       Point 25 becomes po nt 26.                                      "During the transitional period referred to in
       Point 26 becomes po n t 2 7 .                                   paragraph 4" at the beginning of said paragraph
                                                                       3, is hereby replaced by the following: . . .
       Point 27 becomes po n t 2 8 ;
   (b) a new point 29 is added:
                                                                       O OJ No L 226, 3. 8. 1989 (Eighteenth Council
                                                                            VAT Directive of 18 July 1989).';
       '29. In Article 17 (7), "for a limited period and"
            is added after "Subject to the consultation
            provided for in Article 29, each Member                (b) in Article 2 (b), 'Without prejudice to other
            State may, . . . " . ' ;                                   Community provisions and' is inserted before
                                                                       'Under conditions which they shall lay down for
   (c) Point 28 becomes point 30.                                      the purpose of ensuring the correct and straight-
                                                                       forward application of the exemptions provided
       Point 29 becomes point 31;                                      for below . . .';
   (d) a new point 32 is added:                                    (c) in Article 2 (g) the following subparagraph is
                                                                       added:
       '32. The third indent of Article 22 (9) is replaced
            by the following:
                                                                       'The Commission shall, before the end of the
            "— from payment of the tax due where the                   transitional period, submit a report on the
                 amount is less than ECU 100 at the rate               conditions of taxation or exemption of these
                 of exchange in national currency of the               transactions.'