Article 31a Implementing Regulation (EU) No 282/2011

Place of supply of services

Chapter V · Place of taxable transactions › Section 4 · Place of supply of services

Text of Article 31a

1.Services connected with immovable property, as referred to in Article 47 of Directive 2006/112/EC, shall include only those services that have a sufficiently direct connection with that property. Services shall be regarded as having a sufficiently direct connection with immovable property in the following cases:

(a)where they are derived from an immovable property and that property makes up a constituent element of the service and is central to, and essential for, the services supplied;

(b)where they are provided to, or directed towards, an immovable property, having as their object the legal or physical alteration of that property.

2.Paragraph 1 shall cover, in particular, the following:

(a)the drawing up of plans for a building or parts of a building designated for a particular plot of land regardless of whether or not the building is erected;

(b)the provision of on site supervision or security services;

(c)the construction of a building on land, as well as construction and demolition work performed on a building or parts of a building;

(d)the construction of permanent structures on land, as well as construction and demolition work performed on permanent structures such as pipeline systems for gas, water, sewerage and the like;

(e)work on land, including agricultural services such as tillage, sowing, watering and fertilisation;

(f)surveying and assessment of the risk and integrity of immovable property;

(g)the valuation of immovable property, including where such service is needed for insurance purposes, to determine the value of a property as collateral for a loan or to assess risk and damages in disputes;

(h)the leasing or letting of immovable property other than that covered by point (c) of paragraph 3, including the storage of goods for which a specific part of the property is assigned for the exclusive use of the customer;

(i)the provision of accommodation in the hotel sector or in sectors with a similar function, such as holiday camps or sites developed for use as camping sites, including the right to stay in a specific place resulting from the conversion of timeshare usage rights and the like;

(j)the assignment or transfer of rights other than those covered by points (h) and (i) to use the whole or parts of an immovable property, including the licence to use part of a property, such as the granting of fishing and hunting rights or access to lounges in airports, or the use of an infrastructure for which tolls are charged, such as a bridge or tunnel;

(k)the maintenance, renovation and repair of a building or parts of a building, including work such as cleaning, tiling, papering and parqueting;

(l)the maintenance, renovation and repair of permanent structures such as pipeline systems for gas, water, sewerage and the like;

(m)the installation or assembly of machines or equipment which, upon installation or assembly, qualify as immovable property;

(n)the maintenance and repair, inspection and supervision of machines or equipment if those machines or equipment qualify as immovable property;

(o)property management other than portfolio management of investments in real estate covered by point (g) of paragraph 3, consisting of the operation of commercial, industrial or residential real estate by or on behalf of the owner of the property;

(p)intermediation in the sale, leasing or letting of immovable property and in the establishment or transfer of certain interests in immovable property or rights in rem over immovable property (whether or not treated as tangible property), other than intermediation covered by point (d) of paragraph 3;

(q)legal services relating to the transfer of a title to immovable property, to the establishment or transfer of certain interests in immovable property or rights in rem over immovable property (whether or not treated as tangible property), such as notary work, or to the drawing up of a contract to sell or acquire immovable property, even if the underlying transaction resulting in the legal alteration of the property is not carried through.

3.Paragraph 1 shall not cover the following:

(a)the drawing up of plans for a building or parts of a building if not designated for a particular plot of land;

(b)the storage of goods in an immovable property if no specific part of the immovable property is assigned for the exclusive use of the customer;

(c)the provision of advertising, even if it involves the use of immovable property;

(d)intermediation in the provision of hotel accommodation or accommodation in sectors with a similar function, such as holiday camps or sites developed for use as camping sites, if the intermediary is acting in the name and on behalf of another person;

(e)the provision of a stand location at a fair or exhibition site together with other related services to enable the exhibitor to display items, such as the design of the stand, transport and storage of the items, the provision of machines, cable laying, insurance and advertising;

(f)the installation or assembly, the maintenance and repair, the inspection or the supervision of machines or equipment which is not, or does not become, part of the immovable property;

(g)portfolio management of investments in real estate;

(h)legal services other than those covered by point (q) of paragraph 2, connected to contracts, including advice given on the terms of a contract to transfer immovable property, or to enforce such a contract, or to prove the existence of such a contract, where such services are not specific to a transfer of a title on an immovable property.

Case law on Article 31a: 3 cases

Judgments, orders and Advocate General opinions of the Court of Justice and the General Court that cite Article 31a of Implementing Regulation (EU) No 282/2011, most recent first.

C-243/23 Drebers Opinion · 6 June 2024 · Belgium
C-299/20 Icade Promotion Judgment · 30 September 2021 · France · cites Article 31a(2)(d)
C-215/19 Veronsaajien oikeudenvalvontayksikkö (Computing centre services) Judgment · 2 July 2020 · Finland · cites Article 31a(1)(a), (1)(b), (2)(h), (3)(b)

Commission explanatory notes on Article 31a

Not binding. Guidance published by the Commission (DG TAXUD).

Explanatory Notes on services connected with immovable property

Place of supply rules in force since 2017 (Implementing Regulation (EU) No 1042/2013)

2.4.18 Legal services (Article 31a(2)(q) and Article 31a(3)(h)) (p. 46) Article 31a(2)(q) legal services relating to the transfer of a title to immovable property, to the establishment or transfer of certain interests in immovable property or rights in rem over immovable property (whether or not treated as tangible property), such as notary work, or to the drawing up of a contract to sell
2.4.11.4 Does Article 31a(2)(j) apply to houseboats? (p. 40) 211. The CJEU has ruled48 that in some circumstances houseboats can qualify as immovable property (see also explanations under Article 13b(b)). It is notably so when the houseboat is fixed by attachments, which are not easily removable, to the bank and bed of the river, stays in a demarcated location in the river water
2.4.8 Valuation services (Article 31a(2)(g)) (p. 35) Article 31a(2)(g) the valuation of immovable property, including where such service is needed for insurance purposes, to determine the value of a property as collateral for a loan or to assess risk and damages in disputes; 2.4.8.1. Which services consisting in valuation of immovable property are covered by Article 31a(
2.4.15.1 Does Article 31a(2)(n) apply to remotely provided services? (p. 43) 226. Modern technologies can allow specialised businesses to provide, for example, part or all of their inspection or supervision services remotely (i.e. without being physically present at the place where the machines or equipment are located). Since the nature of the service is the same regardless of the technical me
2.2.4 What is covered by Article 13b(d)? (p. 22) 95. According to this provision, any item, equipment or machine which is permanently installed in a building or construction is deemed to be immovable property when it cannot be moved without destroying or altering the building or construction. 96. This provision refers specifically to equipment and machine but any oth
2.4.20.1 What is the scope of application of Article 31a(3)(e)? (p. 50) 274. Article 31a(3)(e) covers the situations where the provision of a stand location at a fair or exhibition site is accompanied by other related services and defines them as not connected with immovable property. © European Union, 2015 26/10/2015 Page 50 of 55 275. Even if the provision of a stand location is accompan
2.4.11.1 What is the purpose of Article 31a(2)(j)? (p. 39) 205. The purpose of this provision is to complement the scope of the services covered by Article 31a(2)(h) and Article 31a(2)(i) in order to ensure consistent tax treatment of the different types of use of immovable property. These three provisions (Article 31a(2)(h), (i) and (j)) all cover services that consist in all
2.4.1 Is the list of Article 31a(2) indicative or exhaustive? (p. 29) 145. The list under Article 31a(2) is purely indicative and provides, as indicated by its wording (‘in particular’), examples of specific services which the EU legislator has considered as being connected with immovable property in the sense of Article 47 of the VAT Directive. By doing so, it provides legal certainty i
2.4.19 Advertising services (Article 31a(3)(c)) (p. 49) Article 31a(3) Paragraph 1 shall not cover the following: (c) the provision of advertising, even if it involves the use of immovable property; 2.4.19.1. What is meant by ‘the provision of advertising’ under Article 31a(3)(c)? 268. Advertising services can be provided through very different means and on different physic
2.4.3.1 Which services enter the scope of Article 31a(2)(b)? (p. 30) 151. Article 31a(2)(b) provides that on-site supervision and security services shall be regarded as services connected with immovable property. 152. When initially discussed in the VAT Committee in 2011, on-site supervision was pointed out as an example of services provided in the framework of the preparation and coord
2.4.6 Work on land and agricultural services (Article 31a(2)(e)) (p. 33) Article 31a(2)(e) work on land, including agricultural services such as tillage, sowing, watering and fertilisation; 2.4.6.1. Which categories of works and agricultural services enter the scope of Article 31a(2)(e)? 175. Article 31a(2)(e) is complementary to previous provisions and covers works on land other than the c
2.4.5 Construction of permanent structures (Article 31a(2)(d)) (p. 33) Article 31a(2)(d) the construction of permanent structures on land, as well as construction and demolition work performed on permanent structures such as pipeline systems for gas, water, sewerage and the like; 2.4.5.1. Does Article 31a(2)(d) also apply to the construction of permanent structures fixed to the river/sea/
2.3.8 Are Articles 31a(1)(a) and 31a(1)(b) cumulative? (p. 29) 143. The two provisions of Articles 31a(1)(a) and 31a(1)(b) are not cumulative. In practice, it is possible that some services will satisfy criteria of both provisions but it is sufficient that requirements from only one of the two are met in order for a service to be qualified as connected with immovable property. 144
2.3.2 How should the ‘sufficiently direct connection’ be assessed? (p. 27) 131. It must be recalled that the rule provided for under Article 47 of the VAT Directive is a particular rule and not an exception to the general rules of Articles 44 and 45. It should be applied based on an objective assessment of the conditions provided under the VAT Directive and the VAT Implementing Regulation32 (
2.3.7 How to understand point (b) of Article 31a(1)? (p. 28) 140. Services are regarded as having a sufficiently direct connection with immovable property where they are provided to, or directed towards, an immovable property, having as their object the legal or physical alteration of that property. In other words they have to focus on the modification of the legal status and/or
2.4.2 Drawing up of plans (Article 31a(2)(a) and Article 31a(3)(a)) (p. 29) Article 31a(2)(a) the drawing up of plans for a building or parts of a building designated for a particular plot of land regardless of whether or not the building is erected; Article 31a(3)(a) the drawing up of plans for a building or parts of a building if not designated for a particular plot of land; 2.4.2.1. What is
2.4.4 Construction of buildings (Article 31a(2)(c)) (p. 32) Article 31a(2)(c) the construction of a building on land, as well as construction and demolition work performed on a building or parts of a building; 2.4.4.1. Which categories of works of construction are covered by the scope of Article 31a(2)(c)? 163. The scope of this provision covers all types of construction works
2.4.7.1 What is the purpose of Article 31a(2)(f)? (p. 34) 178. Article 47 of the VAT Directive defines the place of supply of services connected with immovable property and makes explicit reference to the services of experts. Like valuation services, surveying and assessment of the risk and integrity of immovable property constitute such expert services and must be taxed acco
2.1 General approach to Articles 13b and 31a (p. 15) 35. Part 2 of these explanatory notes provides clarification on the application of the provisions of the VAT Implementing Regulation aiming at determining the place of supply of services connected with immovable property. 36. When services qualify as services connected with immovable property, the place of their supply
2.3.6 How to understand point (a) of Article 31a(1)? (p. 28) 139. Article 31a(1)(a) states that services connected with immovable property have to be derived from a specific property that makes up a constituent element that is central and essential for the service to be supplied. It is not possible to perform such a service without the underlying property which implies that the
2.4.11.3 Does Article 31a(2)(j) apply to office sharing? (p. 40) 209. Office sharing is a developing practice which allows businesses or organisations that own or manage an office building, to share part of their office space with other businesses. This allows the office providers to maximise the revenue of their workspace and increase their professional network. The businesses or p

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