Tax on Share Buybacks: The Council of State Refers a Preliminary Ruling to the CJEU

As part of the appeal—in which the Conseil d'Etat had initially Conseil d'Etat a preliminary ruling on constitutionality (QPC) to the Constitutional Council—some petitioners had also presented arguments based on the claim that the tax on share buybacks was inconsistent with the directive on indirect taxes on the raising of capital.

Yesterday, the Conseil d'Etat decided to refer the matter to the CJEU to determine whether the tax might be in compliance with this directive.

These questions seek to determine, first, whether the tax can be classified as an indirect tax and thus falls within the scope of the directive, and, second, whether Article 5 of the directive precludes the imposition of a tax such as that provided for in Article 235 ter XB.

CE, 8th and 3rd Ch., July 6, 2026, No. 508944, unpublished

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