Comments on ECJ C-453/22: Refund of the VAT wrongly charged if VAT can not longer be reclaimed from suppliers

Michael Schütte, a farmer and forestry farmer, purchased wood from suppliers at a VAT rate of 19% and sold it as firewood to his customers at a VAT rate of 7%.
He declared his sales at a rate of 7% after deducting input tax on purchases at a rate of 19%.
After legal proceedings, it was ruled that Schütte’s purchases were also subject to the reduced rate of 7%, reducing his input tax deduction.
The tax authorities imposed additional assessments, but Schütte’s suppliers refused to correct the invoices due to the limitation period.
Schütte requested the tax authorities to remit the additional VAT, but they rejected the request.
The ECJ ruled that the recipient of a supply of goods has a direct right to a refund of the VAT wrongly charged, including interest, from the tax authorities if they can no longer claim repayment from their suppliers due to the limitation period and there is a formal possibility for suppliers to claim a refund later.
If the wrongly levied VAT is not refunded within a reasonable period, default interest must be paid.