The European Commission has called on Belgium and France to abolish the corporate tax exemptions granted to their ports in order to align with the European Union’s (EU) state aid rules.
“The Commission decisions for Belgium and France – as previously for the Netherlands – make clear that unjustified corporate tax exemptions for ports distort the level playing field and fair competition. They must be removed,” said the commissioner in charge of competition policy, Margrethe Vestager..
She noted that the tax exemptions provided both countries’ ports with a selective advantage, in breach of the EU’s state aid rules, while not pursuing a clear objective of public interest.
“The tax savings generated can be used by the port operators to fund any type of activity or to subsidise the prices charged by the ports to customers, to the detriment of competitors and fair competition,” added Vestager.
Belgium and France have until the end of 2017 to remove the tax exemption in order to ensure that from January 1, 2018, all ports are subject to the same corporate taxation rules as other companies.
Because the tax exemptions existed before both countries’ induction into the EU they are considered as “existing aid” and the Commission cannot recover the aid already granted from France and Belgium.
