European Union Gazettes EGC Preliminary Ruling on VAT Treatment of Credit Intermediation Services

The European Union Official Gazette Feb. 9 published the European General Court (EGC) preliminary ruling for Case No. T-657/24, on the VAT treatment of credit intermediation services. The taxpayer, a Portuguese credit intermediary, challenged the tax authority’s assessment classifying its commission-based mortgage loan intermediation as a VAT-exempt credit negotiation. Upon request for a preliminary ruling, the EGC held that Council Directive 2006/112/EC on the common system of VAT must be interpreted as meaning that the VAT exemption applies when an intermediary: 1) canvasses and sources customers for mortgage-loan agreements; 2) assists them with preparatory work before the agreements are concluded; ...