VAT on services related to sale of subsidiary shares not deductible as input tax

VAT on services relating to sale of shares in subsidiary not deductible as input tax
A BV is the head of a group in the Netherlands specialized in air treatment systems
A is a VAT entrepreneur and performs management activities for subsidiaries
Shares in A have been acquired by B SA and it has become part of the international group
SA borrowed the purchase price for the shares from a consortium of banks
The loan agreement provides that A sells a subsidiary and the proceeds are used to repay the loan
Proceeds from the sale were paid as dividends to SA and used to repay the loan
A engaged four foreign service providers for the sale, cost of €1,009,669
A declared €212,030 VAT but did not deduct it as input tax
Question is whether the sales tax is deductible as input tax and whether the services are exempt from sales tax
Zeeland-West Brabant District Court rules that the VAT is not deductible and the services are exempt mediation services

Source: btwjurisprudentie.nl

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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