Overview of the tax law decisions of the Swiss Federal Administrative Court published in the week of 4 - 10 February 2019.
- Judgment of 11 December 2018 (A-3322/2018): Customs; use of a motor vehicle without customs clearance; the complainant used a motor vehicle registered in the Netherlands, which was owned by a company established there, for his own use in Switzerland without having declared it to customs when crossing the border. The disputed question was whether he was entitled to exemption from import duties on the basis of international or national law. Since the complainant is domiciled in Switzerland, the IÜ (Istanbul Convention; SR 0.631.24) is not applicable. Exemption from import duties pursuant to Art. 35 para. 2 lit. b ZV (Customs Ordinance; SR 631.01) requires the application for a licence for own use on the occasion of the introduction of the goods into the customs territory, which is not on record in the present case. The appellant's reference to Article 36(3) of the Customs Code is also incorrect, since Article 36 of the Customs Code (hire of foreign means of transport for own use) requires a customs declaration on the one hand and use of the hired vehicle based on a written contract on the other. Since it is clear from the contractual provisions that use of the vehicle outside the Netherlands is prohibited, the contractual basis is not given. Rejection of the complaint. The decision was appealed to the Federal Supreme Court.
- Judgment of 2 August 2018 (A-6229/2016): Value added tax (VAT); Subjective tax liability; Osteopathy; Tax period 2013; Decision overruled by the Federal Supreme Court in its ruling of 11 January 2019 (2C_769/2018); see our article of 3 February 2019 for details.
Decisions are listed chronologically by publication date.
