Free Movement of Goods Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Free Movement of Goods - Essay Example (a) Under Portuguese law the Company has to pay a small fee to the Portuguese government agency when it exports goods to Portugal. In order to answer this is question it needs to discuss Article 23-25. For trade between Member States of the EU, the basic rule is laid down in Article 25(12) EC. 'Customs duties on imports and exports and charges having equivalent effect shall be prohibited between Member States. This prohibition shall also apply to customs duties of a fiscal nature.' It was held that Article 25 (then Article 12) could be relied on by individuals in the national courts in Case 26/62 Van Gend en Loos2. This was the first case in which the ECJ held that a Treaty article could have 'direct effect' Customs duties as such were successfully abolished early in the history of the Community (July 1968). However, it was not originally clear what was covered by the concept of 'a charge having equivalent effect' (CEE). The Commission brought a number of cases against Member States in the 1960s and the ECJ took the opportunity to give a very wide meaning to this phrase. One such Case 24/68 Commission v Italy ('Statistical Levy')3, involved an Italian levy on imports and exports across its borders. ... The ECJ emphasised that it is the effect, not the purpose, of the levy that matters: extra fees and charges are likely to put imported goods at a disadvantage compared with domestically produced goods. It also dismissed the Italian Government's argument that the statistical data was a 'service' to traders, which they should pay for. The ECJ ruled: 'Any pecuniary charge, however small and whatever its designation and mode of application, which is imposed unilaterally on domestic or foreign goods by reason of the fact that they cross a frontier constitutes a charge having equivalent effect'. The key part of this definition or test is whether the sum of money has become payable because goods have crossed a frontier within the EU. If it can be shown that the sum is payable for some other reason - for example as payment for a specific service carried out for the trader, such as provision of storage facilities, then it follows that it is not payable because goods have crossed a frontier, and so does not fulfil the Court's definition of an illegal charge. The ECJ has held that the prohibition on 'charges of equivalent effect' also applies to goods imported directly from third countries: see Case 37, 38/73 Diamantarbeiders v Indiamex,4. This means that the CCT duty can be levied on such goods, but no other charges can be added by the Member States. The EC Treaty does not contain any exceptions or defences to Article 25 (the prohibition is strict and absolute) but there are some situations that fall outside the prohibition because they do not fulfil the above test. The money raised by those fees is to pay for a data information service in respect of goods imported into and exported from Portugal. In Case 63/74 W. Cadsky SpA v Instituto nazionale