Diario Oficial de la Unión Europea del 6/4/2022 - Sección Legislación
Text version What is this?Dateas is an independent website not affiliated with any government agency. The source of the PDF documents that we publish is the official agency stated in each of them. The text versions are non official transcripts that we do to provide better tools for accessing and searching information, but may contain errors or may not be complete.
Source: Diario Oficial de la Unión Europea - Sección Legislación
EN
6.4.2022
Official Journal of the European Union
L 107/1
I
Legislative acts
DIRECTIVES
COUNCIL DIRECTIVE EU 2022/542
of 5 April 2022
amending Directives 2006/112/EC and EU 2020/285 as regards rates of value added tax
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 113 thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments, Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament 1, Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee 2, Acting in accordance with a special legislative procedure, Whereas:
1
The rules on rates of value added tax VAT as provided for in Council Directive 2006/112/EC 3 aim to preserve the functioning of the internal market and to avoid distortions of competition. Those rules were designed over two decades ago based on the origin principle. In its communications of 7 April 2016 on an action plan on VAT
Towards a single EU VAT area Time to decide, and of 4 October 2017 on the follow-up to the Action Plan on VAT
Towards a single EU VAT area Time to act, the Commission announced its intention to adjust those rules for a definitive VAT system for cross-border business-to-business trade in goods between Member States that would be based on the taxation in the Member State of destination.
2
Under a system where the supply of goods and services would be taxed in the Member State of destination, suppliers derive no significant benefit from being established in a Member State with a lower VAT rate. Greater diversity in VAT rates would not, under such a system, disrupt the functioning of the internal market nor create distortions of competition. In those circumstances, it would be appropriate to grant more flexibility to Member States in the setting of rates.
3
The goods and services eligible for reduced rates should aim at benefiting the final consumer and pursue objectives of general interest. In order to avoid unnecessary complexity and a subsequent rise in business costs, in particular for intra-Community trade, once Member States select such goods and services accordingly, reduced rates would normally be applicable along the entire commercial chain.
1 Opinion of 9 March 2022 not yet published in the Official Journal.
2 OJ C 283, 10.8.2018, p. 35.
3 Council Directive 2006/112/EC of 28 November 2006 on the common system of value added tax OJ L 347, 11.12.2006, p. 1.
