95/452/EC: Commission Decision of 12 April 1995 on State aid in the form of tax concessions to undertakings operating in the Centro di Servizi Finanziari ed Assicurativi di Trieste pursuant to Article 3 of Italian Law No 19 of 9 January 1991 (Only the Italian text is authentic) (Text with EEA relevance)

• Articles: 6

Article 1

The aid measures provided for in Article 3 of Italian Law No 19 of 9 January 1991, taking the form of tax concessions for financial undertakings operating at the Centro di Servizi Finanziari ed Assicurativi di Trieste ('the Centre`), are compatible with the common market on the conditions set out in Articles 2 to 5.

Article 2

Natural and legal persons resident for tax purposes in Italy shall be permitted to engage in all classes of business carried on at the Centre.

Article 3

The total tax concessions granted shall nopt exceed Lit 65 billion in respect of investments and ECU 3,5 billion in respect of loans, and shall be granted only on profits from transactions with the countries of eastern Europe. They shall be granted only on profits made at the Centre in the first five years of its operation.

Before the Centre begins operations Italy shall take the tax inspection measures necessary to prevent transactions from being offset in such a way that the transactions in respect of which aid is granted is in reality with countries other than those of eastern Europe, and shall inform the Commission of these measures as soon as they are taken. The measures must include a unilateral declaration to be secured from the countries receiving investments or loans from the Centre to the effect that they will ensure access to information on the destination and real ownership of the funds involved in order to guarantee the transparency of transactions.

Article 4

Italy shall inform the Commission of every general measure implementing Article 3 of Law No 19 of 9 January 1991 within 15 days of the adoption of that measure.

Article 5

1. Italy shall inform the Commission of the date on which the Centre begins operations within 15 days of that date.

2. By 30 June every year Italy shall supply the Commission with a detailed report on the previous calendar year's activities. That report shall contain the following information:

- a list of the undertakings permitted to operate at the Centre,

- the number and the overall financial volume of the transactions carried out, broken down into the classes of business qualifying for tax concessions,

- the average rate of interest applied at the Centre for each class of business qualifying for tax concessions,

- the total amount of the tax concessions actually granted, broken down by category of tax; the tax benefit must be shown, being the difference between the amount of each tax actually paid on the transactions to which the special scheme applies and the amount which would have been payable under the ordinary Italian tax arrangements.

3. Italy shall without delay supply the Commission with any detailed information on the operation of the Centre which the Commission may request. If the Commission finds that the inspection measures taken are ineffective, and especially if the funds are directly or indirectly reinvested in countries outside eastern Europe, Italy shall take such inspection measures as the Commission shall indicate.

Article 6

This Decision is addressed to the Italian Republic.

Done at Brussels, 12 April 1995.

For the Commission Karel VAN MIERT Member of the Commission