Italy condemned by the European Union on the taxation of fuel for pleasure boats
In a statement on September 16, 2021, the Court of Justice of the European Union issued a ruling condemning Italy for its policy of taxing fuel for yachts and pleasure boats. "Italy has infringed Union law by exempting from excise duty fuel for private pleasure boats, chartered and used by end users for non-commercial activities. The fact that the chartering of a boat constitutes a commercial activity for the person making the boat available to others does not justify the tax exemption in question," said the European judges. Italy is now required to apply the tax exemption to all pleasure boats, including yachts chartered for leisure activities.
Tough competition in the Mediterranean yachting industry
This judgment of the European Court is a step towards the resolution of a series of procedures between the Mediterranean nautical industries and the commission . After the issue of the VAT rebate on boat rentals, which will be abolished in France in November 2020, the judges put an end to the debate on the reduced fuel taxes in Italy for yachts, which have long been contested as a factor of unfair competition by the French yachting industry.
