テクノは音楽、クラブを軽減税率の対象に　独裁判所

【ベルリンＡＦＰ＝時事】ドイツ連邦税務裁判所（BFH）はこのたび、テクノを音楽と認め、クラブにコンサート会場と同じように軽減税率を適用すべきとの判断を下した。（写真は資料写真）
　首都ベルリンの有名クラブ、ベルグハインを含む原告団は、コンサート会場のチケットの付加価値税（ＶＡＴ）に軽減税率７％が適用されるなら、クラブの入場料の付加価値税も、標準税率１９％ではなく軽減税率を適用すべきと主張していた。
　ＢＦＨは１０月２９日の判決の中で、テクノやハウスを流すクラブの「平均的な客」の目当ては主に音楽とＤＪで、歌手やミュージシャンが参加しているかどうかにかかわらず、クラブのイベントは「コンサートに類似」していると判断した。
　さらに、ＤＪはただ曲をかけるだけでなく「個性ある新しいシーケンスを創り出す」ために「より広い意味では、楽器を使って独自の新しい楽曲を演奏している」としている。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2020/11/12-15:58）

Fans never doubted it, but now a top German court has confirmed it: techno is music and clubs should benefit from the same reduced sales tax rate as concert halls.
Germany's federal fiscal court BFH agreed with plaintiffs, including Berlin's legendary Berghain club, that they should not have to pay the standard 19 percent VAT on ticket sales when concert venues enjoy a lower rate of seven percent.
In a ruling on October 29, the court found that the average visitor at a techno or house club was there primarily for the music and the DJs, making club nights similar to concerts, regardless of whether there were singers or musicians playing instruments.
The DJs do more than just play tracks, they perform their own new pieces of music using instruments in the broader sense, to create new sound sequences that have their own character, the judges said.
The decision is a rare piece of good news for German nightclubs, which have been forced to keep their doors closed for more than six months now because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Party hotspot Berlin, home to iconic clubs like KitKat, Sage and Tresor that usually draw thousands of revellers, has been especially hard hit by the shutdowns.
Fears are growing that despite government aid, short-time work schemes and crowdfunding efforts, not all venues will survive the crisis.