CJEU – Recent Developments in Direct Taxation 2016

1. S. 86Introduction

There are two reportable cases from Greece regarding direct taxation, one has already been decided by the CJEU and one is pending. They both concern actions brought by the European Commission against the Hellenic Republic concerning inheritance tax legislation.

Case C-244/15 has already been discussed in detail at last year’s conference. Therefore, in order to avoid any unnecessary duplication, the present contribution will restrict itself to a description of the facts and the legal issues of the case only to the extent necessary for the reader to get a simple overview. The main focus, however, will be on the key aspects of the CJEU judgment now available for the case.

2. Case C-244/15: The Requirement of primary residency

2.1. Facts

Case C-244/15 (Commission v Hellenic Republic), which was decided by the Court of Justice on 26 May 2016, concerns inheritance taxation.

In particular, Article 26 of the Inheritance Tax Code grants a tax exemption for the acquisition of a residence through inheritance, provided that the heirs or legatees do not already own other property that satisfies their housing needs. The exemption is available not only for Greek nationals but also for n...