Brussels, 26/02/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 26 February, the European Commission decided to bring Germany before the Court of Justice to ensure that the German VAT legislation on exemptions for sharing costs of certain services complies with EU law. In April 2011, the Commission drew up a reasoned opinion calling on Germany to extend the scope of application of its VAT exemptions to services provided to members of all cost-sharing groups, rather than just those provided to members of associations operating in the healthcare sector. This discriminatory restriction runs counter to the VAT directive, which does not state that the exemptions should be reserved for certain professions. In the absence of a satisfactory explanation, the Commission decided to bring the matter before the Court of Justice. (Élodie Lamer)