European Court of Justice Issues Advocate General Opinion on U.K. VAT Rules for Online Operators

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) Sept. 15 issued an advocate general opinion for Case No. C-695/20, supporting the validity of U.K. VAT rules for online platform operators. A U.K. company provided intermediary services for content creators and their subscribers, through an online platform. The company charged creators 20 percent of the amounts paid by subscribers, and paid VAT on this tax base. The U.K. tax authority determined that the company should have paid VAT based on the full subscriber payment amounts. The advocate general agreed with the U.K. tax authority and opined that: 1) online platform operators are subject ...