The Tax on Retail Sales of Certain Hydrocarbons (hereinafter, IVMDH) was a tax introduced by Law 24/2001, of December 27, 2001, on Tax, Administrative and Social Order Measures and was in force from January 1, 2002 to January 1, 2013, at which time it became part of the Special Tax on Hydrocarbons. This tax was levied, in a single phase, on retail sales of certain hydrocarbons, in general, gasoline, diesel, kerosene and fuel oil.
It was a tax assigned to the Autonomous Communities to finance expenses of a sanitary nature as well as environmental actions, where appropriate. It consisted of a state tax rate and an optional autonomous community tax rate.
Following a claim by a company, whose corporate purpose was the transport of goods, for the amount paid of 45,632.38 in respect of IVMDH for the tax years 2005 to 2008, on the grounds that the tax was contrary to Council Directive 92/12/EEC of 25 February 1992, the High Court of Justice of Catalonia suspended the proceedings in order to refer a question to the Court of Justice of the European Union (hereinafter, CJEU) for a preliminary ruling.
In this state of affairs, the CJEU ruled in the Judgment of February 27, 2014, Case C-82/12, declaring the IVMDH contrary to Union Law and recognizing the right to a refund of the taxes borne from 2002 to 2011.
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