natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
BEGRUNDELSE I. Kommissionens forslag – Hvad er det – og hvad er det ikke?
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT I. The Commission Proposal – What it is, and what it is not.
Kort fortalt søger Kommissionen med sit forslag at afskaffe den momsfritagelse for postydelser, som har eksisteret siden vedtagelsen af det sjette momsdirektiv i 1977.
In short, the Commission proposal seeks to remove the VAT exemption for postal services, which has been in place since the 6th VAT Directive was adopted in 1977.
Denne sektor domineredes traditionelt af statslige monopoler, der havde ringe eller slet ingen konkurrence.
Traditionally, this sector was dominated by state-run monopolies, facing little or no competition.
På daværende tidspunkt syntes det derfor hensigtsmæssigt at fritage sådanne ydelser for moms på linje med andre offentlige ydelser.
It therefore made sense, at the time, to make such services exempt from VAT, in line with the treatment of other public services.
I de 25 år, der er gået siden da, har postmarkederne imidlertid været igennem voldsomme ændringer.
However, in the 25 years that have passed since then, postal markets have undergone tremendous changes.
Markedet er blevet liberaliseret på europæisk plan, ligesom der er sket ændringer på nationalt plan, hvor flere gamle post-, telefon- og telegrafvæsener er blevet privatiseret.
The market is being liberalized at European level, and there have also been changes at national level, with several old PTT:s being turned into limited companies.
Kommissionen fremfører, at dette har medført ulige vilkår for aktørerne, særligt fordi det kun er de offentlige ydelser, der er fritaget for moms, mens deres konkurrenters ydelser er fuldt momspligtige.
The Commission argues that this has resulted in an uneven playing filed, especially as only services provided by the public operators are exempt from VAT, with the services provided by their competitors being subject to full VAT.
Det bør understreges, at dette ikke udelukkende er positivt for nogen af virksomhederne – det nuværende system har både fordele og ulemper for begge parter.
It should be stressed that this is not a win-win scenario for either category of operator - the current system has advantages and disadvantages for both.
Offentlige virksomheder har en konkurrencefordel i forhold til kunder, der ikke kan kræve momsrefusion, som f.eks. privatpersoner, velgørende organisationer og banker.
Public operators have a competitive advantage for customers who are not able to claim back VAT, such as private individuals, charities and banks.
Selv om deres priser indeholder en vis grad af “skjult moms” (moms, som virksomhederne har betalt for deres varer, og som de ikke kan få refunderet), kan de tilbyde en samlet pris, der er lavere end de private virksomheders, som skal lægge 25 % moms oveni.
Although their prices do include a degree of "hidden VAT" (VAT it has paid on its purchases, which it is not able to reclaim), they are likely to be able to offer a total price that is lower than a private operator who has to add up 25% of VAT.
Private virksomheder er på den anden side mere attraktive for momsregistrerede virksomheder, fordi kunden, selv om den samlede pris måske er højere, kan få momsen refunderet, hvilket generelt giver lavere nettoomkostninger for virksomheden.
Private operators , on the other hand, are likely to be more attractive for VAT registered companies as, although the overall price may be higher, the customer can reclaim the VAT which generally results in a lower net cost to the business.
En anden ulempe ved momsfritagelse for offentlige virksomheder er, at det favoriserer selvforsyning, dvs. at det er mere rentabelt for virksomheden selv at udføre en ydelse end at indgå en aftale derom, eftersom den ikke er berettiget til momsrefusion.
A further disadvantage of the VAT exemption for public operators is that it favors self-supply, i.e. it is more cost-effective for the operator to carry out a service itself rather than subcontracting it as it can not reclaim VAT paid.
Et eksempel er det britiske postvæsen, Royal Mail, der for nylig meddelte, at det standser driften af sine (udliciterede) posttog og i stedet transporterer posten med sin egen flåde af postbiler.
A case in point is Royal Mail which has recently announced that it will discontinue its (outsourced) mail trains, and instead transport the mail by road with its own fleet of lorries.
På denne baggrund foreslår Kommissionen, at fritagelsen skal fjernes, og at alle forsendelser over 2 kg pålægges en standardmomssats, samtidig med, at medlemsstaterne får mulighed for at anvende en nedsat momssats i forbindelse med adresserede forsendelser på op til 2 kg.
It is against this background that the Commission proposes that the exemption shall be removed, and proposes that VAT shall be charged at the standard rate for all items of mail, over 2 Kg. in weight, while at the same time giving Member States the option of applying a reduced rate of VAT to items of addressed mail weighing less than 2 kilos.
Kritisk vurdering af forslaget
Critical Appraisal of the Proposal
I direktiv 2002/39/EF defineres rammerne for liberalisering af postmarkedet i tre faser, og nærværende forslag er en følge af denne proces, idet det heri forsøges vurderet, om den nuværende momslovgivning er hensigtsmæssig på et stadigt mere åbent marked.
Directive 2002/39/EC has defined the framework for postal liberalisation in three stages, and the proposal at hand is a consequence of that process as it tries to access if current VAT legislation is appropriate in an increasingly open market.
Ordføreren er enig i Kommissionens vurdering af, at lovgivningen ikke er hensigtsmæssig, og at den skal ændres.
Your rapporteur agrees with the Commission's assessment that they are not, and that they need to be amended.
Det er ulogisk at holde fast i tingenes tilstand, idet den nuværende ulige skattebehandling ikke kun hindrer udviklingen af de åbne markeder og dermed udviklingen i liberaliseringen af postmarkedet, men også er konkurrenceforvridende og som oftest til ulempe for den offentlige virksomhed.
It is illogical to keep things they way they are as the current unequal tax treatment not only hampers the development of open markets and thus the development of the postal liberalisation, but this situation also distorts competition and more often than not to the disadvantage of to the public operator.
Ikke desto mindre ønsker ordføreren at undersøge nogle af spørgsmålene i forslaget nærmere:
Your rapporteur would nonetheless like to examine some of the issues raised by the proposal in more detail:
Spørgsmålet om satser
The Rate Issue
Momssatserne har kun gennemgået symbolsk harmonisering i Europa.
Vat rates have only been subject to a token harmonisation in Europe.
Kort fortalt skal medlemsstaterne have én standardsats på mindst 15 % og må højst anvende to nedsatte satser på mindst 5 % på en række varer og tjenesteydelser, der angives i bilag H og K til det sjette momsdirektiv.
In short, Member States are to have one standard rate of at least 15%, and may apply no more than two reduced rates of at least 5% to a range of goods and services listed in Annexes H and K of the 6th VAT Directive.
Ydermere findes der aktuelt en række individuelle undtagelser og midlertidige satser.
In addition, there are currently a number of individual derogations and transitional (parking ) rates.
I øvrigt har Kommissionen for nylig fremsat et forslag om at modernisere alle de nedsatte satser ( KOM(2003) 397 ).
Incidentally, the Commission has recently put forward a proposal to modernise the whole range of reduced rates ( COM(2003)397 ).
Situationen ser ud som følger:
The situation is currently as follows:
Kilde: Kommissionen for De Europæiske Fællesskaber
Source: Commission of the European Communities
Selv om Kommissionen generelt ikke er fortaler for omfattende brug af nedsatte satser, mener den, at de er nødvendige for at sikre, at borgerne ikke rammes af massive portostigninger.
Although the Commission is generally not an advocate of a wide use of reduced rates, it considers that it is necessary in order to ensure that citizens are not hit with massive postage increases.
Den foreslår, at medlemsstaterne skal være berettiget til at anvende en nedsat sats for forsendelser på op til 2 kg.
Its proposal is that Member States shall be allowed to apply a reduced rate to shipments weighing less than 2 kilos.
Kommissionen har tilsendt ordføreren økonomiske data, der viser, at det kun ville få en begrænset virkning, hvis medlemsstaterne skulle bruge nedsatte satser.
The Commission has provided your rapporteur which economic data, showing that, were Member States to use a reduced rate, the impact would be negligible.
Dette er tilfældet, fordi postvirksomhederne, når først de er momsregistrerede, ligeledes kan kræve refusion af indgående moms og dermed sænke deres samlede omkostninger.
This is so because once the Postal operators are subject to VAT, they will also be able to reclaim input VAT paid thus lowering their overall costs.
Det er sandt, at postvirksomhederne af natur er arbejdsintensive, men lønninger og dermed forbundne omkostninger udgør ”kun” 40-60 % af de samlede omkostninger, afhængigt af det enkelte land.
True, postal operators are by their very nature labor intensive, but wage and related costs "only" account for 40-60% of total costs, depending on country.
Kommissionen anslår, at omkostningerne vil falde med gennemsnitligt 4,2 %.
The Commission estimates that, on average, costs will go down by some 4,2%.
På denne baggrund anslår Kommissionen, at prisen for et førsteklassesfrimærke i Det Forenede Kongerige f.eks. vil stige med 0,3 eurocent, hvis der anvendes en nedsat sats på 5 %, og med 5 eurocent, hvis standardsatsen på 17,5 % benyttes.
On the basis of this, the Commission estimates that the price of a first class stamp in the UK, for example would increase by 0,3 euro cent in case of a VAT being charged at a reduced rate of 5%, and by 5 euro cent in case the standard rate of 17,5% were applied.
Det er værd at bemærke, at den britiske postmyndighed, Postcomm, er nået frem til en lignende konklusion.
It is worth noting that the UK mail regulator, Postcomm, has come to a similar conclusion.
Den har udtalt følgende:
In a statement, it has said that
“Hvis Det Forenede Kongerige således opkrævede moms på omkring 5 %, mener vi, at dette stort set ville dække den moms, Royal Mail i øjeblikket betaler, så det i modsætning til de indledende rapporter i pressen ikke bør udledes, at portopriserne kommer til at stige.
"Therefore, if the UK were to charge VAT at around 5%, we believe that this would largely cover the VAT that is currently paid by Royal Mail, so, contrary to the initial press reports, it should not be assumed that stamp prices would have to rise.
Ordføreren er enig i Kommissionens forslag, men ønsker ikke desto mindre at påpege, at nedsatte satser ikke fjerner al konkurrenceforvridning.
Your rapporteur agrees with the Commission's proposal, but he would nonetheless like to point out that the application of a reduced rate will not remove all distortions of competition.
Idet det er frivilligt, om man vil anvende nedsatte satser, vil momssatserne da sandsynligvis variere mellem 5 og 25 %.
Given that the application of the reduced rate is optional, VAT rates are then likely to vary from 5% to 25%.
Han fremsætter derfor et ændringsforslag, hvori han opfordrer medlemsstaterne til så vidt muligt at ensrette deres satser, ideelt set inden for 5-10 %.
He is therefore proposing an amendment urging Member States to align their rates as closely as possible, ideally in the band of 5-10%.
Det svenske postvæsen har i et notat til den svenske regering bemærket, at de gennemsnitlige årlige husstandsomkostninger til breve og julekort udgør 190 SEK (21 EUR).
Indeed the Swedish Postal Operator has noted in a submission to the Swedish Government that the average cost per household for letters and Christmas cards is 190 SEK (€ 21) per annum.
I Det Forenede Kongeriges tilfælde viser tallene for 1996-97, at den gennemsnitlige årlige udgift for en britisk husstand var 29,40 GBP (42 EUR) det pågældende år.
In the case of the UK, figures for 1996-97 indicate that the average annual spend for a UK household was £29,40 (€42) that year.
Går man ud fra, at hele dette beløb bruges til forsendelse af standardskrivelser a 28 pence, ville konsekvenserne for husstanden, hvis den nationale postvirksomhed satte portoen op med 1 pence, være en stigning i de årlige udgifter til 30,45 GBP (1,05 GBP pr. år).
On the assumption that this was all spent on sending standard letters costing 28p, the impact on the household would be - in case the national operator were to increase the postage by 1p - that the annual cost would increase to £30,45 (£1,05 per annum).
Selv om den nationale postvirksomhed skulle sætte portoen op, hvilket efter ordførerens mening ikke er strengt nødvendigt, ville det således kun have begrænsede konsekvenser for forbrugerne.
Thus even if the national operator were to increase the postage - which in your rapporteur's mind is not necessarily necessary - the effect would be limited for consumers.
Endelig mener han, at medlemsstaterne, især de, der ikke har valgt at gøre brug af nedsatte satser, bør indføre særlige ordninger til at afbøde virkningerne for velgørende organisationer og lignende enheder, f.eks. ved at indføre en særlig tarif for registrerede velgørende organisationer, en ordning, der allerede praktiseres i flere medlemsstater.
Finally, he considers that Member States, in particular those, that do no opt for the reduced rate, should introduce considers special schemes to cushion the impact on charities and similar entities, eg. by introducing a special tariff for registered charities which already exists in several Member States.
Direktivets anvendelsesområde
The Scope of the Directive
Af forslaget fremgår det, at den nedsatte sats kun kan anvendes i forbindelse med ydelser, der leveres af den offentlige virksomhed, men ikke i forbindelse med levering af ekspresforsendelsesydelser.
Under the terms of the proposal, it would appear that the reduced rate would only be available to services carried out by the public operator, but not to similar such services carried out by an express service.
Da sådanne ekspresforsendelsesydelser leveres af virksomheder, der også leverer andre ydelser, mener ordføreren, at de bør pålægges samme sats for at garantere lige konkurrencevilkår, særligt inden for B2C e-handel og andre former for distancesalg.
As they provide similar services, your rapporteur considers that they should be taxed at the same rate in order to guarantee a level playing field, in particular in the area of B2C e-commerce and other forms of distance selling.
Hvis ikke, ville den offentlige virksomhed altid have en fordel i forbindelse med forsendelse af varer, der bestilles af privatpersoner fra websteder.
If not, the public operator would always have an advantage for shipments of goods ordered by private individuals from websites.
Den nedsatte sats - vægtgrænsen
Scope of a Reduced Rate - the weight limit
Kommissionen har foreslået en grænse på 2 kg for den nedsatte sats.
The Commission has proposed a 2 kilo cut off for the reduced rate.
Kommissionen mener, at denne relativt høje grænse er berettiget af to grunde: Den ville dække næsten al husstandskorrespondance og alle de forsendelser, der kan lægges i en postkasse, hvilket nedsætter behovet for særlige frimærker eller særordninger.
The Commission contends that this relatively high limit is justified for two reasons: It would cover almost all household correspondence, and it would cover all mail you can put in a mailbox hence reducing the need for special stamps or similar arrangements.
Efter at have undersøgt de forskellige muligheder kan ordføreren nu se logikken i Kommissionens forslag og foreslår således, at det bør fastholdes.
Having considered the various options, Your rapporteur can see the logic of the Commission proposal and proposes therefore that it should be retained.
Som angivet ovenfor er ordføreren stor fortaler for Kommissionens forslag som en logisk konsekvens af liberaliseringen af postsektoren.
As indicated above, your rapporteur strongly supports the Commission proposal as a logical consequence of the liberalisation of in the postal sector.
Han er enig med de, der hævder, at det ene ikke kan behandles uden at inddrage det andet.
He agrees with those who argue that the two cannot be seen isolation from one another.
Han er overbevist om, at kunderne på mellemlang sigt vil drage fordel af begge disse processer.
He is convinced that customers will benefit from both these processes in the medium term.
Det er sandt, at der kan ske prisstigninger på kort sigt, men manglende handling vil samtidig kvæle konkurrencen og begrænse mange af de forventede fordele ved liberaliseringen af postmarkedet.
While it is true that there might be some price increases in the short term, doing nothing would at the same time stifle competition and undo much of the projected benefits of postal liberalisation.
Den nuværende momslovgivning forhindrer nye virksomheder i at komme ind på markedet, og denne barriere skal fjernes.
The current VAT legislation is a barrier hindering new operators from entering a market, and they need to be remedied.
Der er også dem, der hævder, at der ikke er nogen grund til at drøfte dette nu, eftersom markedet først vil blive fuldt ud liberaliseret engang efter 2009.
There are those who argue that there is no need to address this now, as full liberalisation will only take place some time after 2009.
Ordføreren ville ikke desto mindre gerne påpege, at denne proces sker hurtigere i flere medlemsstater, og at der skal handles nu.
Your rapporteur, however, would like to point out that the process is going faster in several Member States, and there is a need to take action now.
Se følgende eksempel:
Consider the following example:
Det Forenede Kongerige har besluttet at liberalisere sit postmarked fuldt ud allerede inden udgangen af 2007.
The United Kingdom has decided to fully liberalise its postal market already by 2007.
Hvis momsreglerne forbliver uændrede, vil nye virksomheder på markedet for brevforsendelser i modsætning til tidligere nationale monopoler være underlagt moms på 17,5 %, hvilket ville give sidstnævnte en væsentlig omkostningsfordel i forhold til alle potentielle konkurrenter.
Leaving the VAT rules as they stand now would mean that new entrants in the letter market would be subject to 17,5% VAT whereas the former national monopoly would not, thus giving it a considerable cost advantage over any potential competitor.
På lang sigt ville forbrugerne således sandsynligvis blive snydt for liberaliseringens sande fordele såsom større valgmuligheder mellem virksomheder og produkter og dermed konkurrence på prisen.
Thus in the longer run, consumers would probably be deprived of the true benefits of liberalisation greater choice of operators and products and thus price competition.
Ordføreren er enig i, at der er en idé i at sammenholde dette spørgsmål med de generelle tendenser inden for liberalisering, men i stedet for at udsætte denne uundgåelige beslutning, vil han som et kompromis foreslå, at medlemsstaterne bør berettiges til at udskyde gennemførelsen af dette forslag, indtil de har åbnet mindst 50 % af deres nationale postmarked for konkurrence.
Your rapporteur can agree that there is a case for linking this issue with the general pace of liberalisation, but rather than just postponing this inevitable decision, he would as a compromise would suggest that Member States should be given the right to defer the implementation of this proposal until they have opened at least 50% of their national market to competition.
Ydermere fremsætter ordføreren for at sikre lige konkurrencevilkår en række ændringsforslag, hvorved den nedsatte sats finder anvendelse på alle virksomheder og ikke kun på tidligere monopoler.
In addition, in order to ensure a true level playing field, your rapporteur is also suggesting a number of amendments whereby the reduced rate would apply to all operators, and not just to the former monopolies.
Endelig fremsætter han et ændringsforslag, hvori han opfordrer medlemsstaterne til at overveje at indføre særlige ordninger for velgørende organisationer, så de ikke endnu engang får problemer med ikke-refunderbar moms.
Finally, he is suggesting and amendment urging Member States to consider special schemes for registered charities so that they are non confronted with yet another instance of non-recoupable VAT.
9.oktober 2003 UDTALELSE FRA UDVALGET OM REGIONALPOLITIK, TRANSPORT OG TURISME
9 October 2003 OPINION OF THE COMMITTEE ON REGIONAL POLICY, TRANSPORT AND TOURISM
På mødet den 21. maj 2003 valgte Udvalget om Regionalpolitik, Transport og Turisme Markus Ferber til rådgivende ordfører.
The Committee on Regional Policy, Transport and Tourism appointed Markus Ferber draftsman at its meeting of 21 May 2003.
På møder den 10. september og 1. oktober 2003 behandlede udvalget udkastet til udtalelse.
It considered the draft opinion at its meetings of 10 September and 1 October 2003.
På sidstnævnte møde vedtog det nedenstående ændringsforslag (for: 39; imod: 6; hverken/eller: 2).
At the last meeting it adopted the following amendments by 39 votes to 6, with 2 abstentions.
Til stede under afstemningen var: Rijk van Dam (mødeformand), Gilles Savary (næstformand), Helmuth Markov (næstformand), Markus Ferber (rådgivende ordfører), Sylviane H. Ainardi, Emmanouil Bakopoulos, Graham H. Booth (for Alain Esclopé), Philip Charles Bradbourn, Luigi Cocilovo, Danielle Darras, Jean-Maurice Dehousse (for Mark Francis Watts), Jan Dhaene, Giovanni Claudio Fava, Jacqueline Foster, Mathieu J.H. Grosch, Cristina Gutiérrez Cortines (for Felipe Camisón Asensio, jf. forretningsordenens artikel 153, stk. 2), Ewa Hedkvist Petersen, Roger Helmer (for Carlos Ripoll y Martínez de Bedoya), Konstantinos Hatzidakis, Juan de Dios Izquierdo Collado, Georg Jarzembowski, Dieter-Lebrecht Koch, Giorgio Lisi, Sérgio Marques, Emmanouil Mastorakis, Erik Meijer, Bill Miller (for John Hume), Enrique Monsonís Domingo, Francesco Musotto, Josu Ortuondo Larrea, Peter Pex, Wilhelm Ernst Piecyk, Samuli Pohjamo, Bernard Poignant, Alonso José Puerta, Reinhard Rack, Ingo Schmitt, Brian Simpson, Renate Sommer, Dirk Sterckx, Ulrich Stockmann, Margie Sudre, Hannes Swoboda (for Garrelt Duin), Joaquim Vairinhos, Jaime Valdivielso de Cué (for Christine de Veyrac, jf. forretningsordenens artikel 153, stk. 2), Ari Vatanen og Herman Vermeer.
The following were present for the vote Rijk van Dam (acting chairman), Gilles Savary (vice-chairman), Helmuth Markov (vice-chairman), Markus Ferber (draftsman), Sylviane H. Ainardi, Emmanouil Bakopoulos, Graham H. Booth (for Alain Esclopé), Philip Charles Bradbourn, Luigi Cocilovo, Danielle Darras, Jean-Maurice Dehousse (for Mark Francis Watts), Jan Dhaene, Giovanni Claudio Fava, Jacqueline Foster, Mathieu J.H. Grosch, Cristina Gutiérrez Cortines (for Felipe Camisón Asensio pursuant to Rule 153(2)), Ewa Hedkvist Petersen, Roger Helmer (for Carlos Ripoll y Martínez de Bedoya), Konstantinos Hatzidakis, Juan de Dios Izquierdo Collado, Georg Jarzembowski, Dieter-Lebrecht Koch, Giorgio Lisi, Sérgio Marques, Emmanouil Mastorakis, Erik Meijer, Bill Miller (for John Hume), Enrique Monsonís Domingo, Francesco Musotto, Josu Ortuondo Larrea, Peter Pex, Wilhelm Ernst Piecyk, Samuli Pohjamo, Bernard Poignant, Alonso José Puerta, Reinhard Rack, Ingo Schmitt, Brian Simpson, Renate Sommer, Dirk Sterckx, Ulrich Stockmann, Margie Sudre, Hannes Swoboda (for Garrelt Duin), Joaquim Vairinhos, Jaime Valdivielso de Cué (for Christine de Veyrac pursuant to Rule 153(2)), Ari Vatanen and Herman Vermeer.
Ifølge det sjette direktiv 77/388/EØF om harmonisering af medlemsstaternes lovgivning om omsætningsafgifter er tjenesteydelser og hertil knyttede leveringer af goder, præsteret af det offentlige postvæsen, fritaget for moms.
Under the Sixth Directive 77/388/EEC on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to turnover taxes, the supply of services by public postal operators, and the supply of goods incidental thereto, are exempted from VAT.