Taxation: Commission refers GREECE to the Court of Justice over reduced rate of excise duty applied to “Tsipouro” and “Tsikoudià”

On 15 February 2017 the European Commission issued a press release stated it had referred Greece to the Court of Justice over reduced rate of excise duty applied to Tsipouro

The European Commission is referring Greece to the Court of Justice of the EU for failing to apply the standard rate of excise duty to two specific alcoholic beverages "Tsipouro" and "Tsikoudià". According to EU law, the same excise duty rate should apply to ethyl alcohol used in the production of alcoholic beverages, unless exemptions or derogations apply. However, Greece does not have a derogation for the spirits Tsipouro or Tsikoudià and currently applies a reduced rate of excise duty (50%) to Tsipouro and Tsikoudià as well as super-reduced rate (around 6%) to the production of that same spirits by small producers, so-called 'two-day distillers'.