CJEU Rules Spain Cannot Restrict VAT Exemption for General Services to Independent Groups’ Members

The CJEU ruled that Spain cannot restrict VAT exemptions for independent groups of persons by requiring services to be used “directly and exclusively” for exempt activities.
The court clarified that general services, such as cleaning, necessary for exempt activities should qualify for the VAT exemption.
The CJEU rejected Spain’s automatic presumption that lack of exclusivity leads to distortion of competition without specific analysis or proof.
The decision highlights that Spanish VAT law is more restrictive than the EU VAT Directive and is not compatible with EU law.

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.