European Court of Justice Issues Preliminary Ruling on Portuguese VAT Refunds for Suspended Economic Activities

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) Dec. 5 issued a preliminary ruling for Case No. C-680/23, on Portuguese VAT refund rules for suspended economic activities. The taxpayer, a Portuguese company, declared a VAT excess when ceasing its economic activity in February 2015. When it resumed activity in May 2016, it sought to offset the VAT excess in its first return. The Portuguese Tax Authority denied the offset, indicating that the taxpayer had to request a refund within 12 months of ceasing activity, instead of carrying the excess forward. Upon request for a preliminary ruling, the ECJ found the Portuguese legislation ...