Woningstichting Maasdriel v Staatssecretaris van Financiën

In the Netherlands case of Woningstichting Maasdriel v Staatssecretaris van Financiën (CJEU Case C-543/11) a local authority demolished a library and sold the land to a housing association. The tax authority issued a ruling that the supply was exempt from VAT under article 135(1)(k) of Directive 2006/112/EC (and was therefore liable to Netherlands ‘transfer duty’ rather than to VAT). The purchaser appealed contending that the land was ‘building land’ which was excluded from the exemption. The case was referred to the CJEU for a ruling on the interpretation of article 135(1)(k). The CJEU held that the exemption under article 135(1)(k) did not include a supply of ‘land which has not been built on following the demolition of the building situated on it even where at the time of that supply improvement works on the land apart from that demolition...