Last month was a busy time for the Commission, which issued infringement proceeding at varying levels not just against Ireland (see earlier) but also to France, Spain, Denmark, The Netherlands and Belgium. The Commission has also recently issued formal requests to Belgium, France, Czech Republic and Sweden and these are covered later in this section.

The Commission will bring France before the Court of Justice of the European Union for failing to comply with the Directive on the taxation of energy and electricity products (Directive 2003/96/EC).

Spain was formally requested to amend its legislation, which allows a reduced VAT rate for general medical equipment, appliances to alleviate animals’ physical disabilities and substances used in the production of medicines. In the Commissions opinion, these measures go beyond the scope allowed under the VAT Directive (2006/112/EC), and may distort competition within the EU.

Spain was also referred to the EU Court over its tax provisions on the appointment of fiscal representatives. The Commission considers that these rules, which require certain non-resident taxpayers to appoint a fiscal representative in Spain, result in discriminatory treatment and are contrary to the freedom to provide services as laid down in Article 56 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

The Commission also referred Denmark, The Netherlands and Spain to the EU Court for their provisions, which impose an exit tax on businesses which cease to be tax residents in these countries. The Commission considers these provisions to be incompatible with the freedom of establishment as laid down in Article 49 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

Lastly the Commission has officially asked Belgium to review its tax system, which imposes additional taxes on income from capital (dividends/interest) paid by foreign intermediaries to Belgian residents who invest abroad. The request takes the form of a ‘reasoned opinion’ (the second step in the infringement procedure laid down in Article 258 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union). If no satisfactory response is provided within two months, the Commission reserves the right to bring this matter before the Court of Justice of the EU.

For full details on all of these proceedings see http://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/index_en.htm