Comments on ECJ C-533/22 (Adient): No VAT due for Intra-Group Service Agreements in Adient Case

The EU Court of Justice ruled that there is no VAT exemption simply because Adient RO and Adient DE belong to the same group.
A service agreement between the two companies is also not sufficient for VAT exemption.
Adient DE, part of the Adient group, entered into a service agreement with Romanian group company Adient RO for processing and assembly services.
Adient DE supplies raw materials to Adient RO, which processes them in Romania, while Adient DE retains ownership throughout the process.
Adient RO argued that the place of service is Germany, where Adient DE is located, and did not charge Romanian VAT.
The Romanian Tax Authority believed the place of service is Romania and that VAT should have been charged.
The Romanian court referred the case to the EU Court of Justice.
The EU Court of Justice concluded that the group relationship and service agreement do not justify a VAT exemption.
The involvement of Adient RO in the delivery of finished products resulting from its activities is irrelevant to the VAT assessment.

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.