Opinion of Mr Advocate General Darmon

Mr President,

Members of the Court,

1. By order of 10 July 1984 the Bundesfinanzhof [Federal Finance Court] referred the following questions to the Court for a preliminary ruling:

2. The apparatus, which is described as a timer/tuner T 50 (hereinafter referred to as the T 50) is manufactured in Japan; Telefunken Fernseh und Rundfunk GmbH (hereinafter referred to as Telefunken) sought to import the T 50 from Japan into the Federal Republic of Germany.

3. On importing the T 50, Telefunken applied to the Oberfinanzdirektion München [Principal Revenue Office, Munich] for a binding customs tariff ruling; a ruling was issued on 14 April 1982. The Oberfinanzdirektion classified the T 50 under subheading 85.15 A III b 2 of the Common Customs Tariff, which covers receivers, whether or not incorporatingsound recorders or reproducers. Such a classification results in an autonomous duty of 22% or a conventional duty of 14%.

4. In its observations, the Commission takes the view that the T 50 cannot be classified as a part or accessory within the meaning of subheading 92.13 D of the Common Customs Tariff. Since its essential function is to receive television broadcasts, it should be classified under tariff subheading 85.15 A III b 2, in accordance with the ruling of the Oberfinanzdirektion.

5. The timer/tuner must be classified either by reference to its essential characteristics or on the basis that it forms a functional unit with the video recorder.

6. Nor can the T 50 in my view be regarded, for the purposes of Rule 2 (a) of the Rules for the Interpretation of the Nomenclature of the Common Customs Tariff, as a component of the VR 510 video recorder with which it forms a functional unit. A T 50 cannot be used on its own. It is exclusively intended for use with the video recorder. The video recorder, on the other hand, can function independently: it can for example record a broadcast directly from the television receiver. It can thus be used independently and perform functions other than that which it performs when combined with the T 50, which is the recording of one programme whilst another is being shown on the screen.

7. In view of the fact that, unlike the accessory instruments, apparatus and equipment referred to in Note 1 (c) to Chapter 92 of the Common Customs Tariff, the timer/tuner is not covered by any specific heading, it must in my view be classified under tariff subheading 92.13 D, in conjunction with subheading 92.11 B.

8. Consequently, I propose that the Court should reply as follows to the question submitted by the Bundesfinanzhof:

1 Translated from the French.