Re A Oy

In Re A Oy (ECJ Case C-33/11) a Finnish company purchased two aircraft from a French manufacturer and leased them to an associated company. It failed to declare its purchase of the aircraft as an intra-Community acquisition although the vendor of the aircraft had declared both transactions as intra-Community sales. The Finnish tax authority issued assessments charging VAT on the acquisitions and also ruled that the onward supplies were exempt under Article 15(6) of the EC Sixth Directive. The company appealed and the case was referred to the ECJ for a ruling on the interpretation of Article 15(6). Advocate-General Cruz Villalón expressed the Opinion that Article 15(6) ‘must be interpreted as meaning that the exemption provided for therein applies not only to that supply of aircraft which takes place directly to airlines operating for reward chiefly on international routes but also...