ECJ BELGIUM – BAT
July 1st, 2005
BY KEITH NUTHALLTHE BELGIAN government has lost an attempt to charge tobacco manufacturers and shippers VAT on cigarettes stolen before they can be shipped from a warehouse to a distributor or retailer. The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled that under the European Union's (EU) sixth VAT directive, EU member states cannot charge VAT on stolen tobacco goods.The case involved British American Tobacco International (BAT) and the Newman Shipping & Agency Company, which had stored BAT cigarettes in an Antwerp warehouse. This was burgled and the tobacco ...
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