8.3.2008   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 64/4


Judgment of the Court (Second Chamber) of 17 January 2008 — Commission of the European Communities v Federal Republic of Germany

(Case C-152/05) (1)

(Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations - Articles 18 EC, 39 EC and 43 EC - National legislation - Conditions for the grant of a subsidy for the construction or purchase of a dwelling for personal occupation - Dwelling required to be situated in the territory of the Member State concerned)

(2008/C 64/03)

Language of the case: German

Parties

Applicant: Commission of the European Communities (represented by: R. Lyal and K. Gross, Agents)

Defendant: Federal Republic of Germany (represented by: M. Lumma and C. Schulze Bahr, Agents)

Re:

Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Infringement of Articles 18, 39 and 43 EC — National legislation under which a housing allowance (Eigenheimzulage) for the construction or purchase of a person's dwelling is granted only to persons subject to unlimited taxation in that Member State and only for dwellings situated in that State.

Operative part of the judgment

The Court:

1)

Declares that, by excluding in the first sentence of Paragraph 2(1) of the Law on subsidies for owner-occupied dwellings (Eigenheimzulagengesetz), in the version published in 1997, as amended by the ancillary budget law of 2004 (Haushaltsbegleitgesetz 2004), dwellings in another Member State from eligibility for the subsidy for owner-occupied dwellings granted to persons liable to unlimited taxation on income, the Federal Republic of Germany has failed to fulfil its obligations under Articles 18 EC, 39 EC and 43 EC;

2)

Orders the Federal Republic of Germany to pay the costs.


(1)  OJ C 132, 28.5.2005.