The European Commission has required the Netherlands to abolish an exemption from corporate tax for its six seaports so as to align the regime with EU state aid rules. The commission has also proposed in two separate decisions that Belgium and France align their taxation of ports with state aid rules.
Nine days ago, Splash reported the EC was investigating alleged state aid to two container terminal operators at the port of Antwerp following a tip off from a rival port.
Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, in charge of competition policy, stated: “Ports are key infrastructure for economic growth and regional development. I will soon present a proposal to facilitate unproblematic investments in ports that can create jobs, to exempt them from scrutiny under EU state aid rules. At the same time, the commission’s decisions today regarding the Netherlands, Belgium and France make clear that if port operators generate profits from economic activities these should be taxed under the normal national tax laws to avoid distortions of competition.”
