Rochus Geissel v Finanzamt Neuss and Finanzamt Bergisch Gladbach v Igor Butin.
Date: 2017-11-15
32


In accordance with the case-law of the Court, in interpreting a provision of EU law, it is necessary to consider not only its wording but also the context in which it occurs and the objectives pursued by the rules of which it forms part (see, to that effect, judgments of 3 December 2009, Yaesu Europe, C‑433/08, EU:C:2009:750, paragraph 24, and of 6 July 2017, Air Berlin, C‑290/16, EU:C:2017:523, paragraph 22).
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Moreover, Article 226 of the VAT Directive states that, without prejudice to the particular provisions of that directive, only the details mentioned in that article are required for VAT purposes on invoices issued pursuant to Article 220 of that directive (see, to that effect, judgment of 15 September 2016, Barlis 06 — Investimentos Imobiliários e Turísticos, C‑516/14, EU:C:2016:690, paragraph 25).
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Consequently, it is not open to Member States to make the exercise of the right to deduct VAT dependent on compliance with conditions relating to the content of invoices which are not expressly laid down by the provisions of the VAT Directive (judgment of 15 September 2016, Barlis 06 — Investimentos Imobiliários e Turísticos, C‑516/14, EU:C:2016:690, paragraph 25).
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In the second place, with regard to the context of which Article 226 of the VAT Directive forms part, it should be recalled that the right to deduct VAT may not, in principle, be limited (see, to that effect, judgment of 15 September 2016, Senatex, C‑518/14, EU:C:2016:691, paragraph 37).
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The Court has held, in that regard, that holding an invoice showing the details referred to in Article 226 of the VAT Directive is a formal condition of the right to deduct VAT. The deduction of input VAT must be allowed if the substantive requirements are satisfied, even if the taxable persons have failed to comply with certain formal conditions (see, to that effect, judgment of 15 September 2016, Senatex, C‑518/14, EU:C:2016:691, paragraph 38 and the case-law cited). It follows that the detailed rules regarding the indication of the address of the issuer of the invoice cannot be a decisive condition for the purposes of the deduction of VAT.
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In the third place, as regards the teleological interpretation of Article 226 of the VAT Directive, the purpose of the details which must be shown on an invoice is to allow the tax authorities to monitor the payment of the tax due and the existence of a right to deduct VAT (see, to that effect, judgment of 15 September 2016, Barlis 06 — Investimentos Imobiliários e Turísticos, C‑516/14, EU:C:2016:690, paragraph 27).
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In that context, it should also be pointed out that the Court has held that the deduction system is intended to relieve the trader entirely of the burden of the VAT payable or paid in the course of all its economic activities (see, inter alia, judgments of 22 October 2015, Sveda, C‑126/14, EU:C:2015:712, paragraph 17, and of 14 June 2017, Compass Contract Services, C‑38/16, EU:C:2017:454, paragraph 34). In order to achieve the objectives pursued by that system, it is not necessary to lay down an obligation to indicate the address where the issuer of the invoice carries out its economic activity.
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Additionally, such an interpretation is confirmed by the judgment of 22 October 2015, PPUH Stehcemp (C‑277/14, EU:C:2015:719), in which the Court ruled that it was possible to deduct input VAT on the basis of invoices issued by a company which a national court had found to be a non-existent trader. Even though the national court had found that the building designated in the commercial register as being the trader’s seat was in a dilapidated state, the Court held that the fact that no economic activity could be carried out at that company’s seat does not mean that that activity could not be conducted in places other than the company’s seat (see, to that effect, judgment of 22 October 2015, PPUH Stehcemp, C‑277/14, EU:C:2015:719, paragraph 35), in particular when those activities are carried out remotely through the use of new computer technologies.