EU committee backs reduced e-book VAT
- May 6, 2017 | Richard Asquith
A key EU Parliamentary committee has voted to back the European Commission proposals to reduce VAT on electronic books to the same rates as their paper equivalent.
The Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee backed the measure, which now goes to the full EU Parliament to vote on.
Only goods specifically listed in the EU VAT Directive Annex II may enjoy reduced VAT rates in the 28 member states. However, this list was drawn-up before the widespread adoption of e-books. France and Luxembourg lost a hearing the European Court of Justices in 2015 to maintain their reduced rates on e-books. Following this, the European Commission has drawn up proposals to enable states to reclassify e-books to the same rates they apply to printed books.