- The European Court of Justice addressed the issue of import VAT exemption for re-imported goods under customs exemption.
- The case involved a Swedish preliminary ruling request concerning VAT exemption for re-imported goods.
- The plaintiff owned horses used in tournaments across various countries.
- The horses were exported from the EU to Norway and later re-imported to the EU without customs declaration.
- Import VAT was imposed, but no customs debt was established.
- The court examined whether both material and formal conditions must be met for exemption from import duties and VAT.
- The court ruled that failure to meet formal obligations does not prevent VAT exemption for re-imported goods in their original state.
- VAT exemption depends on goods being under customs exemption, even if a customs debt arises due to non-compliance with formalities.
- The ruling applies unless there is evidence of attempted deception, which is for the referring court to determine.
Source: blogs.pwc.de
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.
