General Court 3 June 2026, T-383/25 (Opinion of Advocate General Brkan delivered on 3 June 2026.)

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In this Opinion delivered on 3 June 2026 in Case T-383/25, Advocate General Brkan addresses whether a private individual residing in Switzerland who physically introduced a sailing boat into Germany for maintenance and repair without customs clearance or an inward processing authorisation incurred import VAT and customs duties. The AG opines that, under Articles 30, 70, and the first subparagraph of Article 71(1) of Directive 2006/112/EC, the mere physical introduction of a means of transport from a third country without placement under the inward processing procedure triggers the chargeable event and chargeability of import VAT, regardless of subsequent re-exportation without use as a means of transport, unless a retroactive inward processing authorisation is granted pursuant to Article 211(2) of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 (Union Customs Code). The AG further opines that, under Article 124(1)(k) of the UCC, maintenance and repair operations carried out on such a means of transport in the customs territory of the EU constitute 'use' precluding extinguishment of the customs debt, unless covered by a retroactive inward processing authorisation.AI