Understanding buyer’s identity and 0% VAT rate application in WDT – ECJ ruling

The case involved a dispute between B2 Energy and the tax authorities regarding VAT exemption on intra-Community supplies of goods from the Czech Republic to Poland in 2015.
The Czech tax authorities denied the VAT exemption, stating that B2 Energy did not provide sufficient evidence to qualify for the exemption.
The Czech court upheld the tax authorities’ decision, leading B2 Energy to appeal to the Supreme Administrative Court, which then referred the case to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) for a preliminary ruling.
The CJEU ruled that failure to comply with formal requirements should not automatically result in the loss of VAT exemption, except in cases of intentional tax fraud or where formal requirements prevent the presentation of convincing evidence.
The CJEU also stated that additional requirements should not be imposed on the taxpayer to prove the recipient’s VAT status if it is evident from the circumstances.
Ultimately, the CJEU’s decision clarified that VAT exemption should not be denied solely based on formalities if the actual delivery of goods was made to a different recipient than indicated in the tax documents.

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.