Language of document :

Judgment of the Court (Fourth Chamber) of 25 February 2016 — European Commission v Kingdom of the Netherlands

(Case C-22/15) 1

(Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Value added tax — Directive 2006/112/EC — Exemptions — Article 132(1)(m) — Supply of services closely linked to sport or physical education — Exemption for the hiring out of berths and sites for the storage of boats to the members of water sports associations in the context of sailing or leisure activities which cannot be equated with the practice of sport or physical education — Exemption limited to the members of water sports associations which have no employees for delivery of their services — Excluded — Point (d) of the first paragraph of Article 133)

Language of the case: Dutch

Parties

Applicant: European Commission (represented by: L. Lozano Palacios and G. Wils, acting as Agents)

Defendant: Kingdom of the Netherlands (represented by: M. Bulterman and M. Noort, acting as Agents)

Operative part of the judgment

The Court:

Declares that:

by exempting from value added tax, in the context of sailing or leisure activities which cannot be equated with the practice of sport or physical education, the hiring out of berths and sites for the storage of boats to the members of water sports associations which have no employees for delivery of their services, and

by limiting, in cases where the berths and sites for the storage of boats are hired out to persons taking part in sport and that hiring-out is closely linked to and essential for the practice of that sport, the exemption for hiring-out to water sports associations which have no employees for delivery of their services,

the Kingdom of the Netherlands has failed to fulfil its obligations under Articles 2(1), 24(1) and 133 of Council Directive 2006/112/EC of 28 November 2006 on the common system of value added tax, in conjunction with Article 132(1)(m) thereof;

Orders the Kingdom of the Netherlands to pay the costs.

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1 OJ C 228, 13.7.2015.