Becker v. Finanzamt Münster-Innenstadt
European Court of Justice
[1982] ECR 53, [1982] CMLR 499 (1982)
- Written by Steven Pacht, JD
Facts
In 1977, the European Economic Community (EEC) issued a directive requiring EEC member states to revise their value-added tax (VAT) systems by January 1, 1978, to exempt transactions involving the granting and negotiation of credit. The Federal Republic of Germany (Germany) (defendant) did not meet this deadline, but the EEC gave Germany an extension until January 1, 1979. Germany missed this extended deadline too and did not revise its VAT until November 1979, with an effective date of January 1, 1980. Ursula Becker (plaintiff) was a German self-employed credit negotiator. Becker requested a VAT exemption from the German tax authority, the Finanzamt Münster-Innenstadt (authority) (defendant), for the pre-1980 period. Per Becker, she was entitled to the exemption under the EEC’s directive. The authority denied Becker’s exemption request. After Becker’s appeal of the authority’s decision was denied in Germany, Becker sued the authority and Germany in the European Court of Justice. The authority and Germany conceded that individuals could rely on EEC directives in certain cases but argued that Becker did not have an individual right in this case.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning ()
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