30.8.2008   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 223/9


Judgment of the Court (Fourth Chamber) of 10 July 2008 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Hoge Raad der Nederlanden — Netherlands) — Fiscale eenheid Koninklijke Ahold NV v Staatssecretaris van Financiën

(Case C-484/06) (1)

(Reference for a preliminary ruling - First and Sixth VAT directives - Principles of fiscal neutrality and proportionality - Rules concerning rounding of amounts of VAT - Rounding down per item)

(2008/C 223/12)

Language of the case: Dutch

Referring court

Hoge Raad der Nederlanden

Parties to the main proceedings

Applicant: Fiscale eenheid Koninklijke Ahold NV

Defendant: Staatssecretaris van Financiën

Re:

Reference for a preliminary ruling — Hoge Raad der Nederlanden — Interpretation of Article 11A(1)(a), Article 22(3)(b), first sentence, and Article 22(5) of Sixth Council Directive 77/388/EEC of 17 May 1977 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to turnover taxes — Common system of value added tax: uniform basis of assessment (OJ 1977 L 145, p. 1) and Article 2, first and second paragraphs, of First Council Directive 67/227/EEC of 11 April 1967 on the harmonisation of legislation of Member States concerning turnover taxes (OJ, English Special Edition 1967, p. 14) — Rules on the rounding off of amounts of value added tax

Operative part of the judgment

1.

In the absence of specific Community legislation, it is for Member States to decide on the rules and methods of rounding amounts of the tax on added value, but those States must, when making that decision, observe the principles underpinning the common system of that tax, in particular the principles of fiscal neutrality and proportionality;

2.

Community law, as it now stands, entails no specific obligation for Member States to permit taxable persons to round down per item the amount of the tax on added value.


(1)  OJ C 20, 27.1.2007.