- The confiscation measure is deemed disproportionate as the State has recovered the tax debt.
- The Constitutional Court declared the confiscation measure illegal when combined with administrative sanctions if the operator has paid the import VAT.
- The issue originated from a customs authority decision demanding tax, penalties, and asset seizure for confiscation.
- The law required mandatory confiscation in all smuggling cases, even if decriminalized, for amounts under 10,000 euros.
- The Supreme Court questioned the proportionality of this measure when added to administrative fines, unlike domestic VAT.
- The Constitutional Court noted legislative changes do not affect the issue’s relevance, as customs rules still apply to import VAT.
- The Court highlighted the different nature of import VAT compared to customs duties, emphasizing fiscal neutrality.
- Import VAT is treated like domestic VAT but not in sanctions; confiscation is only for criminal conduct in domestic VAT.
- Confiscation for import VAT is always ordered, adding to fines, unlike customs duties which extinguish tax obligations.
- This results in a unique cumulative sanction not seen in domestic VAT or other tax regimes.
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.
