Brussels drops case against UK in EU court over Gibraltar tax
The European Commission before the European Court of Justice on illegal tax breaks in Gibraltar. The commission had taken the British to court earlier this year because Gibraltar, a British territory, was supposed to recover 100 million euros, but had not done so.
In 2018, the committee ruled that a number of international companies in Gibraltar had an unfair advantage through tax agreements between 2011 and 2013, exemption from tax on interest and royalties paid. In this context, a total of 100 million euros less tax to pay than other companies, according to the Brussels illegal state aid.
The committee ordered Gibraltar to collect that money from the companies by 23 April 2019 at the latest. When money started being recovered from only two of the four companies still involved this year, the patience of the day-to-day EU board had run out.
According to Vice-President Margrethe Vestager (Competition), the lack of attributable progress continued to distort competition in the market. In March, she announced that she would go to the EU court. According to the committee, the companies paid the money afterwards and sent in the paper documents.