GBGA's UK tax battle resumes in European court

The Gibraltar Betting and Gaming Association’s (GBGA) bid to overturn the UK Point of Consumption tax resumes today with a central plank of its case to be heard by the European court.

Both the GBGA, represented by law firm Olswang, and defendants, the UK government, will make their arguments to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in Luxembourg as a result of last year’s referral by the UK High Court.

As part of an ongoing judicial review of the tax, the UK High Court requested that the CJEU clarified Gibraltar’s status within the UK, specifically on whether Gibraltar and the UK should be treated as a single member state when applying EU law.

The GBGA has long argued that the 15% levy is an unlawful restriction on the supply of services to the UK, as prohibited by Article 56 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

However, Article 56 is only applicable to individual member states and the UK government contests whether Gibraltar’s position as a British-owned territory, and not an EU member state, means European law should not be applied in this instance.

Olswang partner Dan Tench told EGR a full judgment could take “a significant amount of time”, potentially around six months, while the guidance given by the CJEU will be used to inform the UK High Court’s final judgment on the judicial review.

The GBGA previously failed in its attempt to overturn the UK PoC licensing regime but believes it has a “stronger case” this time around.