Collective Commentary about the New Package Travel Directive

THE TAX IMPLICATIONS OF COMBINED TRIPS 617 commission agent (which can be a collaborative economy platform) 24 , and it is he who invoices in his own name (own nominee) the lease of the tourist dwelling or apartment to the client, There are two leases to consider subject to VAT: owner-intermediary and intermediary-client 25 . The exemption of the lease of housing does not affect the relationship of the owner of the property or owner with the intermediary or commission agent, the rent being taxed at the general rate of 21%. The VAT exemption for housing leases, as the GDT points out, is a finalist exemption, not of the objective type, so the use or destination of the object of the contract is of concern. When the intermediary acts on his own behalf for the client, his previous legal relationship, with the owner, is that of a lease not intended for housing, so he does not enjoy the exemption referred to for the rental of housing. With regard to billing with the client, according to the GDT, “in the case of leasing by the client to an end customer for their enjoyment within a tourist stay, when complementary services of the hotel industry are not provided, will be subject and exempt in the Value Added Tax”. However, the question arises as to whether this last precision of the GDT is adequate as intermediation in its own name with respect to the final tenants can force the intermediary to apply the special regime of travel agencies whenever the services provided come of other businessmen or professionals (and for the purposes of the VATL the owner as the original lessor is an entrepreneur for the purposes of the tax and subject), which could possibly neutralize the VAT exemption of the rental of homes to which the tourist apartments are housed in those that do not provide services of the hotel industry. The application of the special regime of travel agencies in VAT implies that the rate to be applied to the client is 21% 26 , although it may be necessary to warn that we do not believe that the legislator was thinking about the phenomenon of tourist leases when he regulated this regime special. If the intermediary does not invoice the tourist lease on its own behalf, but on behalf of another (alien nomine), the provision of the rental service whose purpose is the dwelling will be between the owner-lessor and the client. Such a 24 Vid. ÁLAMO CERRILLO, R.: “Fiscalidad de los apartamentos turísticos”, Revista Quincena Fiscal , n. 12/2017, parte Estudios, BIB 2017/12000. The author addresses the leasing of such apartments, including P2P or C2C (consumer to consumer) platforms. 25 And hence the art. 11 TWO VATL when trying to specify the services provided determines that they will be: “15.º. Mediation and agency or commission operations when the agent or commission agent acts on behalf of others. When he acts in his own name and mediates in a provision of services, it will be understood that he has received and provided by himself the corresponding services”. 26 FALCÓN y TELLA, R.: “La tributación de UBER (plataforma de servicios de transporte en vehículos particulares”, Quincena Fiscal Aranzadii, n. 13/2014.