The Supreme Court has accepted for review the appeal filed by the State Attorney against the judgment issued by the Administrative Chamber of the High Court of Justice of the Canary Islands. The litigation stems from a claim filed by the company Luis Molina Sport against the assessment issued for the Special Tax on Certain Means of Transport (IEDMT) related to ten jet skis used for organized tourist circuits with daily departures, primarily in Mogán.
The legal controversy, as Maspalomas24H has learned from financial sources this Monday, revolves around the application of the tax exemption provided for boats intended exclusively for rental activities, raising a debate about the legal status of these vessels when their commercial exploitation is carried out through the provision of tourist and sports services.
The Tax Administration, supported by the Canary Islands Regional Customs and Excise Office and the Regional Economic-Administrative Court, assessed the corresponding tax, considering that the activity carried out by the company did not constitute a pure lease agreement. According to the tax authorities, the absence of direct, named contracts between the owning entity and the end users—with various tourist agencies acting as intermediaries—prevented the company from demonstrating strict compliance with the exclusive use requirements stipulated in Article 66.1 of the Excise Tax Law.
However, the Administrative Court of the High Court of Justice of the Canary Islands upheld the taxpayer's appeal at the time, understanding that the intervention of intermediaries corresponded to a mere commercial distribution task and that the vessels were unequivocally intended for recreational rental, also finding a violation of the principle of legitimate expectation in the face of the sanction imposed.
Given this interpretation favorable to the respondent, the State Attorney filed an appeal on points of law, alleging the existence of objective grounds for cassation. The State's representation argued that the doctrine applied by the regional court directly contradicted criteria upheld by the Supreme Court itself and by other superior courts of justice, generating an interpretative divergence detrimental to the general interest and extending to an economic sector deeply rooted in the coastal region.
The debate thus focuses on determining whether the concept of boat rental protected by the tax exemption can be extended to cases where the transfer of the use of the jet ski is inescapably integrated into the provision of a complex recreational or sporting service.
The Admissions Section of the Supreme Court has determined that the matter is of undeniable legal interest for the formation of jurisprudence. The ruling issued establishes as its main object of interpretation the scope of Article 66.1, letter g), of Law 38/1992, on Special Taxes, in relation to the principles of strict interpretation of the tax benefits set forth in Articles 12 and 14 of the General Tax Law.
Thus, the Second Chamber of the Supreme Court will be responsible for determining whether the combination of the transfer of the vessel with an activity of providing tourist services distorts or not the exemption from the tax, providing legal certainty to a strategic sector for the economic fabric linked to nautical sports.
