natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
In any event, the Commission has not been able to identify any possible ground for justifying the preferential treatment from which LuxOpCo benefits as a result of that measure that could be said to derive directly from the intrinsic, basic or guiding principles of the reference system or that is the result of inherent mechanisms necessary for the functioning and effectiveness of the system, whether that reference system is the general Luxembourg corporate income tax system, as established by the Commission, or Article 164(3) LIR, as advocated by Luxembourg and Amazon.
ON VASTU VÕTNUD KÄESOLEVA OTSUSE:
CONCLUSION ON SELECTIVITY
Artikkel 1
In light of the foregoing, the Commission concludes that the advantage identified in Section 9.2 which the contested tax ruling confers on LuxOpCo is selective in nature.
6. novembri 2003. aasta eelotsus, millega Luksemburg kiitis heaks Amazon.com, Inc. pakutud siirdehindade kokkuleppe ja mis võimaldas aastatel 2006–2014 äriühingul Amazon EU S.á.r.l. määrata kindlaks oma Luksemburgis kehtiva äriühingu tulumaksu kohustuse, ning edaspidine sellel eelotsusel põhinevate iga-aastaste äriühingu tulumaksu deklaratsioonide aktsepteerimine on Euroopa Liidu toimimise lepingu artikli 107 lõike 1 tähenduses riigiabi, mis on siseturuga kokkusobimatu ja mida Luksemburg andis ebaseaduslikult, rikkudes Euroopa Liidu toimimise lepingu artikli 108 lõiget 3.
CONCLUSION ON THE EXISTENCE OF AID
Artikkel 2
Since the contested tax ruling fulfils all the conditions of Article 107(1) of the Treaty, it must be considered to constitute State aid within the meaning of that provision.
Luksemburg on kohustatud artiklis 1 osutatud siseturuga kokkusobimatu ja ebaseadusliku abi ettevõtjalt Amazon EU S.á r.l. sisse nõudma.
That aid results in a reduction of charges that should normally be borne by LuxOpCo in the course of its business operations and should therefore be considered as granting operating aid to LuxOpCo.
Mis tahes summad, mis jäävad äriühingul Amazon EU S.á r.l. pärast lõikes 1 kirjeldatud sissenõudmist tagasi maksmata, nõutakse sisse Amazoni kontsernilt või ühelt tema õigusjärglaselt.
BENEFICIARY OF THE AID
Tagasimakstavatelt summadelt tuleb tasuda intressi alates kuupäevast, mil need anti abisaajate käsutusse, kuni nende täieliku tagasimaksmiseni.
The Commission considers the contested tax ruling to grant a selective advantage to LuxOpCo within the meaning of Article 107(1) of the Treaty, since it leads to a lowering of that entity's taxable profit and thus its corporate income tax liability in Luxembourg.
Intressid arvutatakse liitintressina määruse (EÜ) nr 794/2004 V peatükis sätestatud korra kohaselt.
However, the Commission notes that LuxOpCo forms part of a multinational corporate group, i.e. the Amazon group.
Artikkel 3
Separate legal entities may be considered to form one economic unit for the purpose of the application of State aid rules.
Artiklis 1 osutatud abi nõutakse tagasi viivitamata ja tõhusalt.
That economic unit is then considered to be the relevant undertaking benefitting from the aid measure.
Luksemburg tagab käesoleva otsuse täitmise nelja kuu jooksul alates otsuse teatavakstegemise kuupäevast.
As the Court of Justice has previously held, ‘[i]n competition law, the term ‘undertaking’ must be understood as designating an economic unit […] even if in law that economic unit consists of several persons, natural or legal’.
Artikkel 4
To determine whether several entities form an economic unit, the Court of Justice looks at the existence of a controlling share or functional, economic or organic links.
Kahe kuu jooksul alates käesoleva otsuse teatavakstegemisest esitab Luksemburg teabe, mis hõlmab täpse abisumma väljaarvutamiseks kasutatavat meetodit.
In the present case, LuxOpCo was fully controlled by LuxSCS during the relevant period, which in turn was controlled by US-based companies of the Amazon group.
Luksemburg hoiab komisjoni käesoleva otsuse rakendamiseks võetud riiklike meetmete elluviimise käiguga kursis, kuni artiklis 1 osutatud abi on täielikult tagasi makstud.
Moreover, as it is clear from the ruling request, it was the Amazon group, as controlled by Amazon.com, Inc., which took the decision to establish LuxOpCo in Luxembourg.
Komisjoni taotlusel esitab Luksemburg viivitamata teabe käesoleva otsuse täitmiseks juba võetud ja kavandatavate meetmete kohta.
In addition, transfer pricing, by its very nature, affects more than one group company, because a profit decrease in one company normally increases the profit of its counterparty.
Artikkel 5
In the present case, the determination of LuxOpCo's taxable profit in Luxembourg influences the royalty payments to LuxSCS, since the level of the royalty corresponds to any profit recorded by LuxOpCo above [4-6] % of its operating expenses or 0,55 % of revenue, as agreed by the contested tax ruling.
Käesolev otsus on adresseeritud Luksemburgi Suurhertsogiriigile.
The reduction of LuxOpCo's tax liability in Luxembourg therefore not only benefits LuxOpCo, but also LuxSCS.
Brüssel, 4. oktoober 2017
Moreover, since profit attributed to LuxSCS was not subject to taxation in Luxembourg, but, at best, subject to deferred taxation if and when it is distributed to its US-based partners, the contested tax ruling confers aid on the Amazon group as whole.
Komisjoni nimel
Consequently, any favourable tax treatment afforded to LuxOpCo by the Luxembourg tax administration benefits not only LuxOpCo, but the Amazon group as a whole by providing additional financial resources to the entire group.
Margrethe Vestager
Therefore, notwithstanding the fact that that group is organised in different legal personalities and the contested tax ruling concerns the tax treatment of LuxOpCo and LuxSCS, that group must be considered as a single economic unit benefitting from the contested aid measure.
ELT C 44, 6.2.2015, lk 13.
COMPATIBILITY OF THE AID
Kui ei ole teisiti märgitud, rahuldas komisjon kõik Luksemburgi ja Amazoni tähtaja pikendamise taotlused.
State aid shall be deemed compatible with the internal market if it falls within any of the categories listed in Article 107(2) of the Treaty and it may be deemed compatible with the internal market if it is found by the Commission to fall within any of the categories listed in Article 107(3) of the Treaty.
Konfidentsiaalne teave.
However, it is the Member State granting the aid which bears the burden of proving that State aid granted by it is compatible with the internal market pursuant to Articles 107(2) or 107(3) of the Treaty.
Nimetust „LuxOpCo“ kasutab Amazon oma 23. oktoobri 2003. aasta ja 31. oktoobri 2003. aasta eelotsuse taotluses.
Luxembourg has not invoked any of the grounds for a finding of compatibility under either of those provisions for the State aid it has granted through the contested tax ruling.
Nimetust „LuxSCS“ kasutab Amazon oma 23. oktoobri 2003. aasta ja 31. oktoobri 2003. aasta eelotsuse taotluses.
Moreover, as explained in Recital 606, the aid granted by the contested tax ruling constitutes operating aid.
Mitmel korral vahetati konfidentsiaalset teavet, mida ei ole käesolevas jaos aga eraldi mainitud.
As a general rule, such aid can normally not be considered compatible with the internal market under Article 107(3) of the Treaty in that it does not facilitate the development of certain activities or of certain economic areas, nor are the tax advantages in question limited in time, declining or proportionate to what is necessary to remedy to a specific market failure in the areas concerned.
ELT C 44, 6.2.2015, lk 30.
Consequently, the State aid granted to LuxOpCo and the Amazon group by Luxembourg is incompatible with the internal market.
Amazoni sisedokumendid: immateriaalse vara arendamise kulude ja riskide jagamise muudetud ja ümbersõnastatud leping, mis sõlmiti ja jõustus 1. jaanuaril 2005, immateriaalse vara arendamise kulude ja riskide jagamise muudetud ja ümber sõnastatud leping, mis sõlmiti 2. juulil 2009 ja jõustus 5. jaanuaril 2009, ning immateriaalse vara arendamise kulude ja riskide jagamise muudetud ja ümber sõnastatud lepingu esimene muudatus, mis sõlmiti 2014. aasta veebruaris ja jõustus 1. jaanuaril 2014.
UNLAWFULNESS OF THE AID
Nõukogu 22. märtsi 1999. aasta määrus (EÜ) nr 659/1999, millega kehtestatakse üksikasjalikud eeskirjad Euroopa liidu toimimise lepingu artikli 108 kohaldamiseks (EÜT L 83, 27.3.1999, lk 1).
According to Article 108(3) of the Treaty, Member States are obliged to inform the Commission of any plan to grant aid (notification obligation) and they may not put into effect any proposed aid measures until the Commission has taken a final position decision on the aid in question (standstill obligation).
Vt põhjendus 13.
The Commission notes that Luxembourg did not notify the Commission of any plan to grant the contested aid measure, nor did it respect the standstill obligation laid down in Article 108(3) of the Treaty.
Amazon esitas litsentsilepingu 4. lisa 5. märtsil 2015 (koos litsentsilepingu hilisema 1. muudatusega, mis jõustus 1. jaanuaril 2009).
Therefore, in accordance with Article 1(f) of Regulation (EU) 2015/1589, the contested tax ruling constitutes unlawful aid, put into effect in contravention of Article 108(3) of the Treaty.
Amazon.com Inc., aastaaruanne 2016, lk 18.
RECOVERY
Amazon.com Inc., aastaaruanne 2016, lk 3.
THE RECOVERY OBLIGATION
Amazon.com Inc., aastaaruanne 2003, lk 5.
Article 16(1) of Regulation (EU) 2015/1589 establishes an obligation on the Commission to order recovery of unlawful and incompatible aid.
Termin „täitmine“ tähendab protsessi, mille ettevõtja käivitab siis, kui saabunud on toote tellimus.
That provision also provides that the Member State concerned shall take all necessary measures to recover unlawful aid that is found to be incompatible.
See hõlmab tellitud toote ladustamist, selle leidmist, pakkimist ja lähetamist (otse või kolmandate isikute kaudu).
Commission Regulation (EC) No 794/2004 elaborates the methods to be used for the calculation of recovery interest.
Amazon.com Inc., aastaaruanne 2002, lk 2.
Finally, Article 16(3) of Regulation (EU) 2015/1589 states that ‘recovery shall be effected without delay and in accordance with the procedures under the national law of the Member State concerned, provided that they allow for the immediate an effective execution of the Commission decision’.
Vt ka siirdehindade aruanne, lk 6–7.
NEW AID
Amazoni kohtujärgne kokkuvõte, lk 81, punkt 253.
In accordance with Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2015/1589, the power of the Commission to recover aid is subject to a limitation period of 10 years.
Termin „ELi veebisaidid“, mida kasutatakse terves käesolevas otsuses, ei hõlma veebisaiti www.amazon.nl, kuna see veebisait avati pärast käesolevas otsuses käsitletavat ajavahemikku.
The limitation period begins on the day on which the unlawful aid is awarded to the beneficiary either as individual aid or as aid under an aid scheme.
Amazon.com Inc., aastaaruanne 2016, lk 3.
Any action taken by the Commission or by a Member State, acting at the request of the Commission, with regard to the unlawful aid interrupts the limitation period.
Amazon.com, Inc. aastaaruanne 2016, lk 4 ja 67.
Each interruption starts time running afresh.
Termin „ELi kohalikud seotud ettevõtjad“, mida kasutatakse käesolevas otsuses läbivalt, hõlmab järgmisi ettevõtjaid: Amazon.co.uk Ltd., Amazon.fr SARL, Amazon.fr Logistique SAS, Amazon.de GmbH ja Amazon Logistik GmbH, mis olid kõik alates 1. maist 2006 ELi kohalikud seotud ettevõtjad.
The limitation period is suspended for as long as the decision of the Commission is the subject of proceedings pending before the Court of Justice.
Siirdehindade aruanne, lk 12.
Finally, any aid with regard to which the limitation period has expired is deemed to be existing aid.
Amazoni 5. märtsil 2015 edastatud teave: 6. lisa.
Amazon argues that any aid granted under the contested tax ruling is existing aid, because the contested tax ruling is an individual measure granted to it more than 10 years before the Commission started its State aid investigation into that ruling.
Siirdehindade aruanne, lk 13: „As of the Restructuring Date, LuxSCS' principal activities will be limited to those of an intangible holding company and a participant in the ongoing development of the Intangibles through the CSA.
The contested tax ruling was indeed issued more than 10 years before the Commission started its investigation, namely on 6 November 2003.
Additionally, LuxSCS will license the Intangibles to LuxOpCo, subject to the Intangibles License, and will receive royalty payments pursuant to this license.“
However, contrary to what Amazon claims, that does not mean that all and any aid granted under it constitutes existing aid that cannot be recovered.
Amazoni 20. aprilli 2006. aasta kiri Luksemburgi maksuametile (koostanud Amazoni maksunõustaja [1. nõustaja]), lk 2: „EHT [LuxSCS], a wholly owned indirect subsidiary of Amazon.com Inc was created for the purpose of holding and developing intellectual property (by way of financial contribution only). […] EHT [LuxSCS] has an activity limited to the mere holding of Amazon's EU intellectual property, the shares in AEU and has concluded a limited number of legal agreements necessary for the Luxembourg structure to operate (as described under point 1.2 below).
In the present case, the aid granted as a result of the contested tax ruling was granted on an annual basis, at the moment when LuxOpCo had to pay its corporate income tax in Luxembourg.
EHT [LuxSCS] will only receive passive income from its subsidiaries (interest and royalties).“ Selle kirja punktis 1.2 kirjeldatakse käesoleva otsuse põhjenduses 105 iseloomustatud kokkuleppeid.
That is because the purpose of the contested tax ruling was to enable LuxOpCo to determine, over a certain period of time, its annual corporate income tax liability in Luxembourg.
Teine kontserni ettevõtja, keda LuxSCS piiratud summaga rahastas, oli Amazon Eurasia Holding Sarl (2013. aastal [20–30] miljonit eurot).
That ruling endorses a transfer pricing arrangement that allows LuxOpCo to determine its transfer prices, which in turn determine its annual taxable profit.
Juba olemasoleva intellektuaalomandi litsentsimise leping ja juba olemasoleva intellektuaalomandi loovutamise leping, mõlemad sõlmitud LuxSCSi ja ATI vahel 1. jaanuaril 2005.
That amount of profit is then declared in its annual corporate income tax declaration, which Luxembourg has accepted each and every year during the relevant period.
Intellektuaalomandi loovutamise ja litsentsimise leping ettevõtjate LuxSCS, Amazon.fr SARL, Amazon.de GmbH ja Amazon.co.uk Ltd. vahel, jõustunud 30. aprillil 2006.
The aid is thus granted under the contested tax ruling every year that that declaration is accepted by the Luxembourg tax administration.
Kulude jagamise lepingu punkti 1.8 kohaselt on „tuletatud teosed“ ( „Derivative works“) igat liiki ja kõik uued teosed, mille on loonud kulude jagamise lepingu üks osaline või mis on loodud tema jaoks selles olemasolevast materjalist või muu osalise intellektuaalomandile juurdepääsu või selle kasutamise tulemusena ( „any and all new works created by or for one Party [to the CSA] from preexisting material contained within, or as a result of access to or use of another Party's intellectual property, […].“).
What this means for the present case is that only aid granted before 24 June 2004 constitutes existing aid, since the limitation period laid down by Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2015/1589 was interrupted on 24 June 2014, the date on which the Commission sent a letter to Luxembourg requesting information on any rulings granted to Amazon.
Kulude jagamise leping, 6. jagu („Litsentsimine ja omandiõigus“).
In any event, the Commission recalls that by letter of 23 December 2004 the Luxembourg tax administration confirmed the continued validity of the transfer pricing arrangement endorsed by the contested tax ruling following a delay in the implementation of the restructuring of Amazon's European operations, for which that ruling was initially requested.
Kulude jagamise leping, 4. jagu „Development Cost Allocation“ (Arenduskulude jaotamine) ja 5. jagu „Payments“ (Maksed).
All aid granted to LuxOpCo and the Amazon group by way of the contested tax ruling therefore constitutes new aid.
Kulude jagamise leping, punkt 9.12.
NO GENERAL PRINCIPLE OF LAW PREVENTS RECOVERY
Kulude jagamise leping, mis jõustus 5. jaanuaril 2009, punkt 2.3.
Article 16(1) of Regulation (EU) 2015/1589 provides that the Commission shall not require recovery of the aid if this would be contrary to a general principle of Union law.
Nagu on selgitatud kulude jagamise lepingu punktis 1.1, piirdub A9 intellektuaalomandi õiguste panus kulude jagamise lepingusse intellektuaalomandi õigustega, mida A9 e-kaubanduse otsingu- ja navigeerimistehnoloogiate valdkonnas omab või muul moel valdab.
Luxembourg argues that the principles of legal certainty and legitimate expectations stand in the way of recovery in the present case, first, because the Commission is retroactively applying an allegedly new approach to transfer pricing and, second, because the Code of Conduct Group (Business Taxation) and the OECD Forum on Harmful Tax Practices had assured Luxembourg that its tax ruling practice based on Article 164(3) LIR and the Circular is consistent with the OECD Code of Conduct and the OECD TP Guidelines.
Nende hulka kuuluvad Amazoni tarkvaraplatvormi tehnoloogia, ELi veebisaitide kujundus, kataloogid, otsingu- ja navigeerimisfunktsioonid, logistikaprotsess, tellimuste töötlemine, klienditeenindus ja personaliseerimisfunktsioonid.
The principle of legal certainty is a general principle of EU law that predicates the predictability of rules and their legal effects.
Täpsemate üksikasjade kohta vt põhjendus 174.
According to the case law, the principle of legal certainty prevents the Commission from indefinitely delaying the exercise of its powers.
Nagu Amazon oma 21. augustil 2015 esitatud teabes selgitas, võttis LuxSCS Euroopa tegevuse ümberkorraldamise osana üle Amazon Int'l Sales, Inc. and Amazon Int'l Marketplace, Inc. kogutud Euroopa tarbijaandmete juriidilise omandiõiguse.
The Court of Justice has also stated that the only grounds on which, in exceptional cases, that principle may be invoked, is when the Commission has manifestly failed to act and has clearly breached its duty of diligence in the exercise of its supervisory powers.
Edaspidi arendas ja hooldas kliendiandmete baasi LuxOpCo.
However, when a measure has been granted without having been notified, the mere fact that there has been a delay by the Commission in ordering recovery does not suffice in itself to render that recovery decision unlawful under the legal certainty principle.
Need hõlmavad kaubamärki, kaubanduslikku nimetust, stiili, logosid, Amazoni ja seotud immateriaalse vara esitusviisi.
In the present case, since the contested tax ruling was never notified to the Commission by Luxembourg, nor otherwise publicly available, the Commission could only have learnt of ts existence when Luxembourg responded to its request for information on 4 August 2014.
Kulude jagamise lepingu punktides 1.1, 1.4 ja 1.11 sätestatakse järgmist: „Notwithstanding the foregoing, the parties expressly agree that the […] [Intangibles] does not include any World Wide Web domain names.“
The principle of legitimate expectations can be invoked by any person in a situation where an EU authority ‘has caused him to entertain expectations which are justified’.
Nagu on selgitatud Amazoni 12. juunil 2015 esitatud teabes, andis LuxSCS LuxOpCo-s olevad aktsiad ettevõtjale Amazon Europe Core S.à r.l. üle 16. detsembril 2013.
Important limitations apply to invoking that principle, however, as decided by the Court of Justice.
Siirdehindade aruanne, lk 30.
First, the Court has stated that that principle cannot be invoked unless the person invoking it ‘has been given precise assurances by the administration’.
Amazoni 5. märtsil 2015 esitatud teabe põhjendus 6 ja Amazoni sisedokument: Amazoni 14. aprilli 2006. aasta kiri Luksemburgi maksuametile, lk 2.
Second, Member States cannot invoke that principle in cases where they have failed to notify the aid measure to the Commission.
Siirdehindade aruanne, lk 13.
Third, the Commission's alleged failure to act is irrelevant when an aid measure has not been notified to it and, consequently, the Commission's silence cannot be interpreted as an implicit authorisation of the measure that may give rise to legitimate expectations.
Vastutav müüja on üksus, kes omab ja pakub kaupu müügiks ja kes vastutab käibemaksu kogumise ja maksmise eest.
Consequently, since the Commission never gave precise assurances to Luxembourg that the contested tax ruling does not constitute aid and Luxembourg never notified the contested tax ruling to the Commission, Luxembourg cannot rely on the principle of legitimate expectations.
Ühendkuningriigi Parlamendi Alamkoda: aruanne HMRC 2011–2012 aasta raamatupidamisaruannete kohta – Kirjalikud tõendid ettevõtjalt Amazon EU Sarl, esitanud Andrew Cecil (ELi avaliku poliitika direktor, LuxOpCo, Luksemburg), 13. november 2012: „Amazon EU Sarl owns the inventory, earns the profits associated with the selling these products to end customers and bears the risk of any loss. From Luxembourg, Amazon EU Sarl processes and settles payments from its European customers.“ Kättesaadav aadressil: https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmselect/cmpubacc/writev/716/m03.htm.
Luxembourg's subsequent claim that the Commission adopted a novel approach for a finding of State aid to the present case cannot be accepted.
Amazoni 22. märtsi 2016. aasta teave, lk 1–2 ja selle E lisa.
First, in response to an argument made by a Member State that direct taxation fell under its fiscal autonomy, the Court of Justice explicitly acknowledged, in a judgment of 1974, the application of the State aid rules in the field of direct taxation.
LuxOpCo juhtis Amazoni Euroopa tegevuse kontsernikontot ja likviidsust; vrd Amazoni sisedokument: „Luxembourg Headquarters – Overview“ (Luksemburgi peakorter – ülevaade), lk 11–17, ja Amazoni sisedokument: „Pre & Post Goldcrest Balance Sheet Analysis“ (Goldcresti-eelne ja -järgne bilansi analüüs), lk 1, ja Amazoni sisedokument: „Advance Tax Agreement“ (maksualane eelotsus), Amazoni kiri […]-le, 2. aprill 2014, punkt 11, ja Amazoni sisedokument: „EU Policies and Procedures Manual“ (ELi poliitika ja menetluste käsiraamat), kehtib alates 1. maist 2006, lk 3.
Since a tax ruling is no more than an interpretation of the tax rules to a particular situation, upon which a taxpayer may rely to determine its tax burden in a particular Member State, the State aid rules necessarily apply to tax rulings as well, as explicitly acknowledged by the Commission in its 1998 Notice on the application of the State aid rules to measures relating to direct business taxation (‘the 1998 Notice’).
Amazoni 14. aprilli 2006. aasta kiri Luksemburgi maksuametile, lk 2.
Second, the Commission adopted a series of decisions in 2002 to 2004 in which it concluded that several tax schemes in various Member States constituted State aid because they endorsed a method of assessment of taxable income for certain categories of undertaking that departed from a reliable approximation of an arm's length outcome or otherwise benefitted certain multinational group companies under the ordinary rules of corporate taxation.
Maksuüksuses (le régime d'intégration fiscal) võidakse emaettevõtjat maksustada nagu kontserni koos ühe või mitme tütarettevõtjaga.
That a method of assessment of taxable income producing an outcome that diverges from the arm's length principle results in the grant of State aid for its beneficiary/-ies was explicitly endorsed by the Court of Justice in a 2006 judgment.
Äriühingu tulumaksu seisukohast tähendab see, et tütarettevõtjaid peetakse emaettevõtja poolt ülevõetuks.