EU Court of Justice rejects Airbnb case regarding sharing tax info with Brussels

The Brussels Airbnb regulation does not violate European Union law, ruled the European Court of Justice. The company considered the obligation to pass on certain data to tax authorities to be in violation with the EU directive on electronic commerce, but the Court of Justice of the European Union rejected that complaint on Wednesday.

Airbnb is an online platform that connects renters and landlords of accommodation for a fee. To regulate offers on the Airbnb platform, the Brussels parliament approved an ordinance on tourist accommodation in 2014.

This ordinance required Airbnb Ireland to transfer information to tax authorities about transactions that took place with tourists in 2017. According to the company, this violated the freedom of services. It went to the Belgian Constitutional Court to annul that provision in the ordinance, which turned to the European Court of Justice to clarify the matter.

The judges in Luxembourg ruled that the provision of the Ordinance relates to the field of taxation, which is explicitly excluded from the scope of the EU directive on electronic commerce. 

Moreover, the Court observes that this obligation applies to all providers of intermediary services in tourist accommodation, regardless of where they are established and how they offer their services. It is not a restriction on the free movement of services, and the provision is therefore not discriminatory.

(TOM)

© BELGA