Judgment of the Court (Seventh Chamber) of 11 May 2023 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Varhoven administrativen sad — Bulgaria) — MOMTRADE RUSE OOD v Direktor na Direktsia ‘Obzhalvane i danachno-osiguritelna praktika’ Varna pri Tsentralno upravlenie na Natsionalnata agentsia za prihodite

(Case C-620/21, (1) MOMTRADE RUSE)

(Reference for a preliminary ruling - Common system of value added tax (VAT) - Directive 2006/112/EC - Article 132(1)(g) - Exemption for the supply of services closely linked to welfare and social security work, by bodies recognised by the Member State concerned as being devoted to social wellbeing - Supply of services provided to a non-taxable person in a Member State other than that in which the supplier is established - Assessment of the nature of the services and the condition of being a body recognised as being devoted to social wellbeing - Determination of the relevant national law - Concept of ‘Member State concerned’)

(2023/C 223/02)

Language of the case: Bulgarian

Referring court

Varhoven administrativen sad

Parties to the main proceedings

Applicant: MOMTRADE RUSE OOD

Defendant: Direktor na Direktsia ‘Obzhalvane i danachno-osiguritelna praktika’ Varna pri Tsentralno upravlenie na Natsionalnata agentsia za prihodite

Operative part of the judgment

Article 132(1)(g) of Council Directive 2006/112/EC of 28 November 2006 on the common system of value added tax, as amended by Council Directive 2008/8/EC of 12 February 2008, must be interpreted as meaning that:

first, the supply of social services provided to natural persons residing in a Member State other than that where the service provider has established its business is capable of being exempted under that provision and, secondly, it is irrelevant in that regard whether the supplier has had recourse to a company established in that other Member State to contact its clients.

Article 132(1)(g) of Directive 2006/112, as amended by Directive 2008/8, must be interpreted as meaning that:

where a company provides the supply of social services to natural persons residing in a Member State other than that where that company established its business, the nature of those supplies and the characteristics of that company for the purpose of determining whether the supplies fall within the concept of ‘services … closely linked to welfare and social security work … by … [a body recognised] as being devoted to social wellbeing by the Member State concerned’, within the meaning of that provision, must be examined in accordance with the law, transposing Directive 2006/112, as amended, of the Member State where that company established its business.

Article 132(1)(g) of Directive 2006/112, as amended by Directive 2008/8, must be interpreted as meaning that:

the fact that a company making the supply of social services is registered at a public body of the Member State of taxation as a supplier of social services in accordance with the legislation of that Member State suffices for considering that that company falls within the concept of a ‘[body recognised] as being devoted to social wellbeing by the Member State concerned’, within the meaning of that provision, only where such a registration is subject to the prior determination by the competent national authorities of the social wellbeing of that company for the purposes of that provision.

(1) OJ C 24, 17.1.2022.