Keywords
Summary

Keywords

1. Preliminary rulings – Jurisdiction of the Court – Limits

(Art. 234 EC)

2. Common Customs Tariff – Tariff headings – Screwdriver ends

Summary

1. When the Court is requested to give a preliminary ruling on a matter of tariff classification, its task is to provide the national court with guidance on the criteria which will enable the latter to classify the products at issue correctly in the Combined Nomenclature, rather than to effect that classification itself, a fortiori since the Court does not necessarily have available to it all the information which is essential in that regard. In any event the national court is in a better position to do so.

(see para. 23)

2. Heading 8204 of the Combined Nomenclature of the Common Customs Tariff in Annex I to Regulation No 2658/87 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and on the Common Customs Tariff, as amended by Regulation No 2388/2000, is to be interpreted as not covering separately imported screwdriver bits with square drive for slotted-head, cross-head, TX (internal Torx) and Allen screws. By contrast, the same heading is to be interpreted as covering separately imported parts of the square system which are not in direct contact with the fastener during use and also separately imported square-system torque meter wrenches.

(see paras 28, 33, 37, operative part 1-3)