The EU VAT Treatment of Shares and Other Securities

Abstract

The topic of the EU VAT treatment of the issue, acquisition, holding and sale of shares has become a rather complicated subject matter over the last thirty years. There is a vast body of CJEU case law on the VAT consequences of the acquisition, holding and sale of shares. This case law contains crucial ambiguities in its very fundamentals, causing serious legal uncertainty among businesses. Determining the VAT consequences of dealings in shares has become one of the most complex topics in the field of VAT, particularly when it comes to determining the right of deduction. In this paper, the author takes an integrated look at the VAT aspects of dealings in shares and other securities, providing as much clarity where possible, while still recognizing the ambiguities in the case law of the CJEU.