European Court of Justice Issues Judgment on German Import VAT Rules

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) Jan. 18 issued a judgment on Case No. C-791/22, on German import VAT rules for determining the place where VAT was incurred. The taxpayer, a Poland-based company, transported cigarettes to a German buyer without informing the customs authorities. The German Principal Customs Office took the view that the import VAT incurred in Germany and consequently issued a tax notice. Upon request for a preliminary ruling, the ECJ held that: 1) the national customs legislation was incompatible with EU Directive 2006/112/EC, on the common system of VAT, because the place of importation must be determined ...