Official Journal of the European Union

C 44/2

(Case C-488/18) (1)

(Reference for a preliminary ruling - Taxation - Value added tax (VAT) - Directive 2006/112/EC - Article 132(1)(m) - Exemption of ‘certain provisions of services closely linked to sport or physical education’ - Direct effect - Concept of ‘non-profit-making organisations’ )

(2021/C 44/02)

Language of the case: German

Referring court

Parties to the main proceedings

Applicant: Finanzamt Kaufbeuren mit Außenstelle Füssen

Defendant: Golfclub Schloss Igling e.V.

Operative part of the judgment

1.Article 132(1)(m) of Council Directive 2006/112/EC of 28 November 2006 on the common system of value added tax must be interpreted as not having direct effect, so that, if the legislation of a Member State which transposes that provision exempts from value added tax only a limited number of provisions of services closely linked to sport or physical education, that provision cannot be directly relied on before the national courts by a non-profit-making body to secure the exemption of other provisions closely linked to sport or physical education which that body provides to persons practising those activities and which that legislation does not exempt.

2.Article 132(1)(m) of Directive 2006/112 must be interpreted as meaning that the concept of ‘non-profit-making body’, within the meaning of that provision, constitutes an autonomous concept of EU law, which requires that, in the event that that organisation is dissolved, it may not distribute to its members any profits made by it which exceed the capital shares paid up by those members and the market value of the contributions in kind made by them.

(1) OJ C 392, 29.10.2018.