When a lunch at the tax inspector’s restaurant turns into a tax audit (Episode 2)

We had previously reported on the ruling by the Administrative Court of Appeal, which found that a tax assessment against a restaurant was invalid; the assessment was based, in part, on a receipt obtained by a tax inspector who had eaten lunch at the restaurant (CAA Lyon, July 2, 2025, No. 23LY01876).

The inspector had indeed noticed on the receipt—which he had requested several times—that the VAT rate for the set meal that included a beer he had consumed was incorrect. The restaurant had applied a 10% VAT rate, whereas the standard rate for beer is 20%.

However, the Court had overturned the tax assessment, ruling that the inspector’s lunch and the collection of the receipt should be considered a tax audit—and more specifically, an unannounced audit.

However, in a ruling issued last Friday, the Conseil d'Etat found that the Court could not consider this to be an unannounced inspection.

He ruled that the ticket had been issued "in a private capacity, outside the scope of official duties and the performance of any assignment entrusted to the officer in question," and remanded the case to the Administrative Court of Appeals.

Let’s hope that the court will address the fairness of such a procedure, as it’s hard to see why the inspector needed to obtain a receipt for his meal for personal use.

ECJ, 9th Chamber, April 17, 2026, Case No. 507643, unpublished

This monitoring service is provided by Mispelon Avocat, a law firm specializing in tax audits and tax litigation. You can stay updated by subscribing to the newsletter via this link.