The Nature of Applicable Interests in Case of Unclaimed VAT Refund in Italy

• The Italian Supreme Court issued a ruling on the nature of applicable interests in the case of unclaimed VAT refunds.
• The case involved a staggered sale of a company’s inventory, which was classified as a transfer of business subject to registration tax.
• After receiving a tax assessment notice, the company filed a refund request for the VAT paid, which was granted in 2015.
• The company then requested a further refund, disputing the amount of interest accrued on the refunded VAT.
• Lower courts ruled in favor of the company, applying compensatory interests starting from the date of VAT payment.
• The Italian Revenue Agency appealed, arguing that only moratory interests should apply from the date of VAT refund.
• The Supreme Court upheld the appeal, stating that only moratory interests under the law of 1969 should apply, starting from the date of the refund request.
• The court also clarified that the interests should start from the date of the refund request, not the date of the actual VAT refund.
• The ruling raises questions about the different treatment of VAT refunds compared to other domestic tax refunds and its compatibility with EU jurisprudence.

Source: eutekne.info

Note that this post was (partially) written with the help of AI. It is always useful to review the original source material, and where needed to obtain (local) advice from a specialist.

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