Vos Aannemingen BVBA v Belgische Staat

In Vos Aannemingen BVBA v Belgische Staat (Case C-405/19) (1 October 2020) the CJEU held that the fact that a third party might benefit from a supply did not necessarily affect the ability of the recipient of the supply to recover input tax in full.

Vos Aannemingen constructed and sold apartment buildings on land owned by a third party. Thus for each sale there was (a) the sale of the apartment by Vos Aannemingen and (b) a sale by the third party of an undivided share in the land corresponding to the apartment.

Vos Aannemingen incurred all the costs of advertising estate agents and administration and recovered the related VAT as input tax. The Belgian authorities considered however that a proportion of that input tax was attributable to the sale of the land and was therefore irrecoverable. Vos Aannemingen appealed.

After conflicting decisions in the...