CJEU - Recent Developments in Value Added Tax 2018

1. S. 153Introduction

1.1. The Right to Dispose of Goods as Owner

Deliveries of goods (against consideration) will be supplies of goods as referred to in the VAT Directive not only if they fall within the scope of the general definition of a supply of goods (lex generalis) given in Art. 14(1) of the VAT Directive. They will also be treated as supplies of goods for VAT purposes if they fall under the special categories of supplies as referred to in Art. 14(2). In the Gmina Wroclaw case, the Court of Justice emphasized that with regard to the lex specialis of Art. 14 (2)(a) (regarding the expropriation of property) the requirement that there must be “a transfer of the right to dispose of goods as the owner” cannot be imposed. This would only be a condition for the application of the general rule regarding supplies of goods provided for in Art. 14(1). This raises the question whether the imposition of such a requirement therefore also does not apply to, for example, the special provision in Art. 14(2)(c) on the supplies of goods made via a commission agent. We will address this question in more detail in section 2.

1.2. The Principle of Legitimate Expectations

Under the heading “taxable transac...