natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
Det faktum, at de specifikationer, Alki LP har fastsat for ristningsprocessen og i særdeleshed ristningskurverne, giver SMBV mulighed for at riste kaffe, der sælges under Starbucks-varemærket, giver ikke SMBV nogen fordel i form af øget salg eller højere salgspriser, idet SMBV principielt ikke sælger sin produktion til slutbrugere, som værdsætter Starbucks-mærket.
The principle that transactions between intra-group companies should be remunerated as if they were agreed to by independent companies negotiating under comparable circumstances at arm's length is generally referred to as the ‘arm's-length principle’.
SMBV sælger stort set hele sin produktion til Starbucks' franchise-forretninger, som alle betaler royalty til koncernen for at udnytte Starbucks-IP'en på markedet, hvilket repræsenterer en værdi for deres salgsaktiviteter.
In the Belgian coordination centres judgment, the Court of Justice endorsed the arm's-length principle as the benchmark for establishing whether a group company receives an advantage for the purposes of Article 107(1) of the Treaty as a result of a tax measure that determines its transfer pricing and thus its taxable base.
SMBV udnytter ikke ristnings-IP'en direkte på markedet.
The purpose of the arm's-length principle is to ensure that transactions between group companies are treated for tax purposes by reference to the amount of profit that would have arisen if the same transactions had been executed by independent companies.
Butikkerne er kontaktfladen til slutbrugerne, som værdsætter den ensartede smag forbundet med Starbucks-mærket.
Otherwise, group companies would benefit from a favourable treatment under the ordinary corporate income tax system when it comes to the determination of their taxable profits that is not available to independent companies, leading to unequal treatment between companies that are factually and legally in a similar situation in light of the objective of such a system, which is to tax the profits of all companies falling under its tax jurisdiction.
Endelig viser Figur 3 på basis af de økonomiske data i tabel 2 og tabel 8 SMBV's fortjeneste på sine kafferistningsaktiviteter, som fremkommer ved at trække den pris SMBV betaler til SCTC for grønne kaffebønner, fra indtægterne af ristet kaffe registreret under posten »INDT EMBALLERET KAFFE« for hvert år [158].
The Commission's assessment of whether the Netherlands granted a selective advantage to SMBV must therefore consist in verifying whether the methodology accepted by the Dutch tax administration by concluding the APA for the determination of SMBV's taxable profits in the Netherlands departs from a methodology that results in a reliable approximation of a market-based outcome and thus from the arm's-length principle.
Figur 3
In so far as the methodology the Netherlands accepted by the SMBV APA results in a lowering of SMBV's tax liability under the general Dutch corporate income tax system as compared to non-integrated companies whose taxable profit under that system is determined by the market, that APA will be deemed to confer a selective advantage to SMBV for the purposes of Article 107(1) of the Treaty.
Underskud i SMBV's ristningsaktiviteter siden 2010 (indtægter og købspris for kaffe i EUR)
The arm's-length principle therefore necessarily forms part of the Commission's assessment under Article 107(1) of the Treaty of tax measures granted to group companies independently of whether a Member State has incorporated this principle into its national legal system.
Kaffebønnernes købsværdi ved anskaffelse fra den schweiziske forretningsenhed SCTC
It is used to establish whether the taxable profits of a group company for corporate income tax purposes has been determined on the basis of a methodology that approximates market conditions, so that that company is not treated favourably under the general corporate income tax system as compared to non-integrated companies whose taxable profit is determined by the market.
I betragtning af dette samt oplysningerne i Tabel 10, der viser procentdelen af royalty udbetalt af SMBV til Alki LP i forhold til indtægterne fra salg af kaffe, ser ristningsknowhow og ristningskurver ikke ud til at skabe positiv værdi for SMBV.
Consequently, in response to the Netherlands' argument that the Commission, in undertaking such an assessment, replaces the national tax administration in its interpretation of their national law [130], the Commission recalls that is not examining whether the SMBV APA complies with the arm's-length principle as laid down in Article 8b(1) of the CIT or the Decree, but whether the Dutch tax administration conferred a selective advantage on SMBV for the purposes of Article 107(1) of the Treaty by concluding an APA that endorses a profit allocation that departs from the amount of profit that would have been taxed under the general Dutch corporate income tax system if the same transactions had been executed by independent companies negotiating under comparable circumstances at arm's length.
I 2013 betalte SMBV f.eks. en royalty på 22,8 mio. EUR til Alki LP for ristnings-IP'en, selv om SMBV synes at have noteret et bruttounderskud (før fradrag af driftsudgifter) på omkring [1-10] millioner EUR på sin ristningsvirksomhed.
In response to the argument invoked by the Netherlands and Starbucks that because transfer pricing is not an exact science, the assessment by the Commission of the transfer pricing arrangement agreed in the SMBV APA should necessarily be limited [131], the Commission recalls that the approximation component of transfer pricing has to be viewed in the light of its objective.
Med andre ord finansieres royaltybetalingen fra SMBV til Alki LP gennem de andre aktiviteter i SMBV [159].
While the 2010 OECD TP Guidelines do indeed acknowledge that transfer pricing is not an exact science in paragraph 1.13 thereof, that same paragraph first explains that ‘[i]t is important not to lose sight of the objective to find a reasonable estimate of an arm's-length outcome based on reliable information’.
Da driftsomkostningerne udgør en lille del af SMBV's samlede omkostninger, ville en nedskæring i omkostningerne ikke være tilstrækkeligt til at genoprette rentabiliteten, fordi det ikke ville kompensere for den økonomiske virkning af den øgede avance på grønne kaffebønner.
The approximative nature of the arm's-length principle can therefore not be invoked to justify a transfer pricing analysis that is either methodologically inconsistent or based on an inadequate comparables selection.
SMBV's royaltybetaling til Alki LP for ristnings-IP i en koncernintern kontekst forekommer udelukkende at have det strukturelle formål at flytte overskud fra SMBV's videresalgsfunktion til Alki LP.
In conclusion, if it can be shown that the methodology accepted by the Dutch tax administration, by concluding the SMBV APA, for the determination of SMBV's taxable profits in the Netherlands departs from a methodology that leads to a reliable approximation of a market-based outcome and thus from the arm's-length principle, that APA will be found to confer a selective advantage on SMBV for the purposes of Article 107(1) of the Treaty in so far as it leads to a lowering of SMBV's tax liability under the general Dutch corporate income tax system as compared to non-integrated companies whose tax base is determined by the profits they generate under market conditions.
Den kendsgerning, at ristningsaktiviteterne ikke genererer tilstrækkeligt overskud til at dække royaltybetalingen, bekræfter derfor yderligere den særlige interne koncernforbindelse mellem SMBV og Alki LP, nemlig at metoden til fastsættelse af niveauet for denne royalty som justerbar variabel som accepteret i SMBV APA ikke er i overensstemmelse med armslængdeprincippet.
Methodological choices, parameters and adjustments underlying the SMBV APA
På baggrund af sammenligningen med Starbucks' ristningsaftaler med tredjeparter finder Kommissionen derfor, at en transfer pricing-analyse af armslængdeværdien af SMBV's royaltybetaling til Alki LP for ristnings-IP'en fører til den konklusion, at der ikke burde betales royalty for den pågældende IP, da SMBV ikke synes at drage nogen fordel af brugen af ristnings-IP'en i dette forhold.
The SMBV APA accepts a methodology for determining a profit allocation to SMBV within the Starbucks group, which is based on a transfer pricing report prepared by Starbucks' tax advisor that calculates a remuneration for a function performed by SMBV (roasting/manufacturing).
Ingen af de argumenter, som Nederlandene eller Starbucks har fremført under undersøgelsen, afsvækker denne konklusion.
In calculating the remuneration due to SMBV, the tax advisor proceeds to successive methodological choices in the transfer pricing report:
Royaltybetalingen afspejler ikke et vederlag for overtagelse af erhvervsrisici
the choice to use the TNMM to estimate a taxable profit;
For at imødegå Kommissionens betænkeligheder ved armslængdekarakteren af royaltybetalingen hævdede Nederlandene og Starbucks, at betalingen ikke kun afspejler et vederlag for brugen af ristnings-IP'en, men også betaling for Alki LPs [161] overtagelse af erhvervsrisici.
the choice of operating expenses as profit level indicator for use in the application of the TNMM [132]; and
Nederlandene påberåber sig, at SMBV ikke ville løbe den økonomiske risiko for tab af lager, da disse omkostninger ifølge den måde, hvorpå royaltybetalingen fastsættes under ristningsaftalen, i sidste instans bæres af Alki LP [162].
the application of a working capital adjustment to address differences between SMBV and the comparables used to estimate an arm's-length mark-up [133].
Kommissionen bemærker for det første, at denne påstand ikke understøttes af transfer pricing-rapporten, der ligger til grund for SMBV's APA-anmodning.
The transfer pricing report concludes on a remuneration for the roasting function SMBV performs equal to a mark-up of [9-12] % of its operating expense, which is accepted by the Dutch tax administration as constituting an arm's-length remuneration in the SMBV APA.
Rapporten modsiger tværtimod klart denne påstand ved at udtale, at »[SMBV] har fået licens på bestemte IP-rettigheder fra Alki LP, der er nødvendige for at anvende kafferistnings-fremstillingsprocessen og udnytte retten til at levere kaffe til udviklere.
The Dutch tax administration further accepts in the SMBV APA that any profit generated by SMBV in excess of that level of remuneration will be paid out as a royalty to Alki LP.
Til gengæld betaler [SMBV] en royalty til Alki LP for den licenserede IP« [163].
In the following sections, the Commission will explain why it considers that several of the methodological choices underlying the transfer pricing report should not have been accepted by the Dutch tax administration in the SMBV APA, because their acceptance results in a taxable profit for SMBV that cannot be regarded to constitute a reliable approximation of a market-based outcome and results in a reduction of SMBV's tax liability as compared to non-integrated companies whose taxable profits is determined by the market.
Hvad vigtigere er, ingen steder i transfer pricing-rapporten nævnes det, at royaltybetalingen til dels udgøre en betaling fra SMBV til Alki LP for overtagelse af erhvervsrisici.
First and foremost, the transfer pricing report fails to identify or analyse SMBV's controlled and uncontrolled transactions [134], which is a necessary first step in assessing the arm's-length nature of commercial conditions applicable between related parties for transfer pricing purposes.
I realiteten bevarer SMBV flere risici end nævnt i transfer pricing-rapporten, især lagerrisici og visse risici i forbindelse med levering af bønner og udnyttelsen af produktionskapacitet.
More specifically, the transfer pricing report fails to examine whether the royalty payment made by SMBV to Alki LP for the licensing of the roasting IP, which is the intra-group transaction for which the SMBV APA was effectively requested and granted [135], is at arm's length.
Kommissionen bemærker for det andet, at Nederlandene synes at antage, at den måde, hvorpå den kontraktlige ordning i ristningsaftalen er struktureret [164], giver juridisk substans til den faktiske fordeling af risiko og ansvar mellem Alki LP og SMBV.
As the Commission will demonstrate, a transfer pricing analysis of the arm's-length value of that royalty based on comparable uncontrolled transactions leads to the conclusion that no royalty should be due for the roasting IP licensed by Alki LP to SMBV [136].
Men ifølge SMBV's regnskab følger royaltybetalingen af SMBV's APA og ikke af kontrakten mellem Alki LP og SMBV.
The transfer pricing report also fails to examine whether the price charged for the green coffee beans by SCTC to SMBV is at arm's length.
For det fjerde, for så vidt angår Nederlandenes og Starbucks videre påstand om, at det er den lave risiko ved SMBVs forretning, som rent faktisk bestemmer den transfer pricing-metode, der blev godkendt i SMBVs APA, bemærker Kommissionen, at de under undersøgelsen fremlagte oplysninger ikke understøtter denne påstand.
The transfer pricing report fails to examine the intra-group transaction for which the SMBV APA was effectively requested and granted
I betragtning 113 i åbningsafgørelsen gav Kommissionen udtryk for sin tvivl om Alki LP's kapacitet til at bære og kontrollere en given forretningsrisiko.
The SMBV APA agrees to a taxable remuneration for SMBV for its roasting function.
Når en virksomhed påtager sig en risiko, bør den på den ene side være i stand til at kontrollere disse risici [169] og på den anden side kunne bære dem økonomisk [170].
It also agrees that any profits generated by SMBV in excess of that level of remuneration will be paid out as a royalty to Alki LP which is not taxed in the Netherlands.
Evnen til at påtage sig en risiko bør derfor analyseres, før den foreslåede struktur vurderes i relation til normale konkurrencevilkår.
In other words, by concluding the SMBV APA, the Dutch tax administration expressly accepts that the tax advisor's methodology for calculating the taxable remuneration due to SMBV for its roasting function directly determines the level of the royalty paid by SMBV to Alki LP for the roasting IP licensing arrangement between them.
OECD's TP-retningslinjer fra 2010 præciserer, at kontrollen i denne sammenhæng skal forstås som evnen til at beslutte sig til at påtage sig denne risiko og til at administrere den.
It also expressly accepts that the actual level of profits generated by SMBV in the Netherlands is to be reduced for tax purposes by that royalty payment, resulting in a lower taxable profit than that actually recorded.
Det forudsætter, at virksomheden har medarbejdere, der udfører disse kontrolfunktioner [171].
Indeed, if SMBV's accounting profits are higher than the level of remuneration agreed to in the SMBV APA, the royalty payment to Alki LP will be increased by the difference between that level of remuneration and SMBV's accounting profits.
Men ifølge oplysningerne fra Starbucks [172] har Alki LP ingen ansatte selv, og selv om det principielt ikke kan udelukkes, at partnerne i Alki LP, der er et kommanditselskab, kan bidrage til dets aktiviteter, selv om de ikke er ansatte, er disse partnere ifølge de fremlagte oplysninger [173] selskaber uden nogen ansatte.
Thus, the royalty is an adjustment variable determined by combining SMBV's accounting profits and the remuneration agreed in the SMBV APA.
Derfor forekommer Alki LP's driftskapacitet til at påtage sig risiko at være begrænset.
As such, the roasting IP licensing arrangement between Alki LP and SMBV is the transaction for which the SMBV APA was effectively requested and the methodology for determining the level of that royalty as an adjustment variable is the transaction effectively being priced by the SMBV APA.
Derudover er Alki LP's evne til at bære en økonomisk risiko begrænset til dets og dets partneres økonomiske ressourcer.
Nevertheless, the transfer pricing report upon which that APA is based only proposes a remuneration for SMBV by analysing a function performed by it (roasting/manufacturing) through the application of the TNMM; it does not identify the royalty payment as the adjustment variable in constructing that proposed remuneration.
Ifølge oplysningerne fra Starbucks [174] opstiller disse partnere ikke særskilte regnskaber, men er selskaber med begrænset ansvar.
Consequently, that report fails to identify or analyse the roasting IP licensing arrangement for which that royalty is paid as the transaction effectively being priced and therefore fails to establish a methodology for ensuring that that royalty payment is in line with the arm's-length principle.
Derfor er Alki LP's økonomiske kapacitet ringere end og kan ikke sidestilles med koncernens samlede økonomiske kapacitet.
The purpose of a transfer pricing exercise, however, is to establish whether the conditions of controlled transactions are consistent with the arm's-length principle.
Som svar anfører Starbucks, at Alki LP's driftskapacitet tilvejebringes af medarbejdere i Starbucks Inc., som lejlighedsvis udlejes til at støtte Alki LP i dets opgaver [175].
That focus on transactions for the purposes of transfer pricing is clearly expressed in paragraph 1.6 of the 2010 OECD TP Guidelines, which clarifies from the outset that ‘because the separate entity approach treats the members of an MNE group as if they were independent entities, attention is focused on the nature of the transactions between those members and on whether the conditions thereof differ from the conditions that would be obtained in comparable uncontrolled transactions.
Kommissionen finder ikke dette argument overbevisende.
Such an analysis of the controlled and uncontrolled transactions, which is referred to as a “comparability analysis”, is at the heart of the application of the arm's-length principle’ [140].
Der er ingen grund til, at ansættelsen af en medarbejder til støtte for ledelsen skal gå igennem Alki LP: SMBV kunne have ansat en medarbejder til at understøtte administrationen af selskabet direkte.
In other words, commercial transactions between related and unrelated parties must first be clearly identified before being assessed for comparability.
Da ansvarligheden ved outsourcede ledelsesfunktioner er svagere end ved en direkte ledelse, indebærer outsourcingen øgede formidlingsomkostninger fra et virksomhedsledelsesperspektiv.
That focus on transactions is equally supported under Dutch tax law by the requirement not to allow for deductions of expenses which are not in line with the arm's-length principle [141].
Da SMBV's aktiviteter bl.a. består i at drive en ristningsfacilitet, kræver ledelsen af SMBV kontinuerlig overvågning og kan ikke varetages effektivt af en deltidsmedarbejder.
It is only if it is impossible to compare a particular intra-group transaction for which an APA is being sought (taking into account the functions performed) to similar uncontrolled transactions, that resorting to a comparison of functions performed is justified.
Derfor kan Alki LP ikke varetage administrationen af SMBVs forretningsrisici lige så effektivt som direkte medarbejdere eller ledere i SMBV ville kunne, og derfor kan risikoen højst delvist afbødes gennem dens kontraktlige overførsel til Alki LP.
In this vein, paragraph 1.41 of the 2010 OECD TP Guidelines explains that ‘before broadening the search to include a larger number of potentially comparable uncontrolled transactions based on similar functions being undertaken, thought should be given to whether such transactions are likely to offer reliable comparables for the controlled transaction’ [142].
Denne konklusion understøtter den tvivl om den økonomisk rationalitet af denne struktur, der blev udtrykt i betragtning (89) i åbningsafgørelsen, idet Alki LP forekommer at være overflødig i denne struktur.
This also explains the preference for the CUP method over all other transfer pricing methods expressed both in paragraph 2.14 of the 2010 OECD TP Guidelines and in paragraph 2.7 of the 1995 OECD TP Guidelines, both of which state: ‘Where it is possible to locate comparable uncontrolled transactions, the CUP method is the most direct and reliable way to apply the arm's-length principle.
Oplysningerne fra Starbucks om, at Alki LP blev føjet til strukturen af skattemæssige grunde i USA [177], bekræfter Kommissionens tvivl om det økonomisk fornuftige i strukturen.
The 1995 OECD TP Guidelines even exclude automatically resorting to transactional profit methods such as the TNMM for transfer pricing purposes, stating in paragraph 3.50 thereof: ‘There are, however, cases where traditional transaction methods cannot be reliably applied alone or exceptionally cannot be applied at all.
For det femte bemærkes, at selv om Kommissionen accepterer påstandene fra Nederlandene og Starbucks om, at visse af SMBV's salgsrisici afbødes gennem aftaler med butikkerne, har dette ingen betydning for SMBV's forhold til Alki LP.
These would be considered cases of last resort. (…) However, even in a case of last resort, it would be inappropriate to automatically apply a transactional profit methods without first considering the reliability of that method’.
Med hensyn til SMBV's begrænsede spillerum i forhandlingerne med sine modparter om kommercielle vilkår og priser anerkender Kommissionen under alle omstændigheder, at det prognosesystem, der gælder for butikkerne, ser ud til at mindske forretningsusikkerheden for SMBV [178].
The Netherlands' observation that its tax administration is not bound by a best method rule does not relieve that administration of the obligation to confirm that the transfer pricing method the taxpayer selects results in a reliable approximation of an arm's-length price before accepting an APA request based on that method.
Under kontrakterne mellem butikkerne og SMBV kan butikkerne ikke væsentligt afvige fra prognosen udleveret til SMBV, og de er også forpligtede til at aftage produkter fra SMBV.
That obligation is even reflected in the provision of the Decree to which the Netherlands refers in this regard.
Aftagelsen af SMBV's produktion sikres gennem kravene til butikkerne om at købe produktionen af SMBV.
Indeed, paragraph 3.1 of the Decree provides ‘[t]he Dutch Tax and Customs Administration should always begin its investigation into the transfer prices from the perspective of the method used by the taxpayer at the time of the transaction.
Men væsentlige risici i produktionsforretningen relaterer ikke kun til lagerrisici, men primært til produktionskapaciteten, og hverken Nederlandene eller Starbucks har dokumenteret, at de underliggende risici for udsving i produktionskapacitetsudnyttelsen annulleres helt via disse kontrakter.
This means that the taxpayer is, in principle, free to choose a transfer pricing method, provided the selected method results in an arm's-length result for the specific transaction.
Specifikt kan navnlig kontrakterne med tredjepartsproducenter, især [ikkeforbundet forarbejdningsvirksomhed 1], ikke helt tilpasses eventuelle udsving i efterspørgslen.
The taxpayer must demonstrate its choice’.
For det sjette har de kontrakter, der Nederlandene henviser til, og hvori SCTC garanterer kvaliteten af de leverede grønne kaffebønner, heller ingen betydning for forholdet mellem SMBV og Alki LP.
In other words, the method proposed by the taxpayer should be the starting point of the tax administration's examination of the APA request.
Der er under alle omstændigheder tale om et standardforretningsarrangement, der ikke mindsker risikoen for SMBV sammenlignet med de normale markedsvilkår.
However, whatever method chosen must ensure an arm's-length result for the specific transaction being priced, so that the tax administration remains free to question the appropriateness of the method chosen by the taxpayer.