19.6.2010

Official Journal of the European Union

C 161/10

(Case C-510/08) (<span class="super note-tag">1</span>)

(Free movement of capital - Articles 56 EC and 58 EC - Gift tax - Land on which a building has been constructed - Allowance to be set against the taxable value - Different treatment of residents and non-residents)

(2010/C 161/12)

Language of the case: German

Referring court

Parties to the main proceedings

Applicant: Vera Mattner

Defendant: Finanzamt Velbert

Re:

Reference for a preliminary ruling — Finanzgericht Düsseldorf — Interpretation of Articles 39 EC and 43 EC and of Article 56 EC in conjunction with Article 58 EC — National legislation on the taxation of gifts of land fixing the tax-free part of the value of the land at EUR 1 100 if the donor and the acquirer are resident in another Member State, whereas the tax-free part is EUR 205 000 if either the donor or the acquirer is resident in national territory.

Operative part of the judgment

Article 56 EC in conjunction with Article 58 EC must be interpreted as precluding legislation of a Member State, such as that at issue in the main proceedings, which provides that, for the calculation of gift tax, the allowance to be set against the taxable value in the case of a gift of immovable property in that State is smaller where the donor and the donee were resident in another Member State on the date of the gift than the allowance which would have applied if at least one of them had been resident in the former Member State on that date.

(<span class="note">1</span>) OJ C 44, 21.2.2009.