CJEU Rules 0% VAT Applies to Goods Exported Outside EU Without Supplier’s Knowledge

• CJEU issued a judgment on August 1, 2025, regarding reclassification of transactions from intra-Community supply to export.
• The case involved a Polish taxpayer where goods were initially reported as moved from Poland to Lithuania.
• Polish tax authorities found the goods were actually exported outside the EU, questioning the intra-Community transaction classification.
• Authorities imposed a 5% VAT rate and a 30% penalty due to improper verification of delivery.
• The Polish company argued for reclassification as indirect export with a 0% VAT rate.
• The case was referred to the Court of Justice for a preliminary ruling.
• Key issues included whether goods declared as intra-Community supply should be considered export if moved outside the EU, and the relevance of the supplier’s knowledge.
• CJEU ruled that a 0% VAT rate applies if the export was established by customs documents, even without the supplier’s knowledge.
• The ruling emphasized the importance of definitions and objective criteria for export and supply of goods.

Source: mddp.pl

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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