Say cheese! Photographs and the definition of works of art for VAT purposes

A reduced VAT rate can apply to works of art. The definition of art which is used for this beneficial treatment, can differ from the definition of art which experts use. This is particularly the case when regarding photographs. The central question in this article is to whether this different view can be based on inherent characteristics of VAT as the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) claims. In order to answer this question, the article will start with a short overview of the benefits for works of art, followed by the definitions used for customs duties and VAT. The core part of this article includes an analysis of the case law applying these definitions to photographs: the 1989 Raab case and the 2019 Regards case.