taxud/2414/08 - European Commission - Europa

pension funds with no restriction on membership and closed pension funds limited to
certain categories of members, such as single and multi-employer pension funds, related
members and individual pension funds;
(f) Hedge funds: A hedge fund is an investment fund charging performance fees and
typically only opens to a limited range of investors, in some countries only open to
accredited investors. Though these funds do not necessarily hedge their investments
against adverse market moves the term is used to distinguish them from regulated retail
investment funds;
(g) Real estate investment funds: A real estate investment trust is a corporation
investing in real estate that reduces or eliminates corporate income taxes. In return REITs
are usually required to distribute a certain percentage, usually 90% of their income,
which then may be taxable in the hands of the investors. The REIT structure was
designed to provide a similar structure for investment in real estate as mutual funds
provide for investments in shares.
(jj) intermediation in insurance and financial transactions
Under Article 135a (9) of Directive 2006/112/EC "intermediation in insurance and
financial transactions" means the supply of services rendered to, and remunerated by, a
contractual party as a distinct act of mediation in relation to the insurance or financial
transactions referred to in points (a) to (e) of Article 135(1), by a third party
intermediary.
These provisions focus exclusively on those services where the mediator is remunerated
by a contractual party; such a party can be the supplier or the client of an exempt
insurance or financial service supply, but also any third person. That explains that also
sub-contracting scenarios of intermediation are covered by the exemption.
This provision is complemented by Articles 10 and 11 of the Regulation which provide
for the following:
1. For the purposes of point (9) of Article 135a of Directive 2006/112/EC, an
activity shall constitute a distinct act of mediation at least where one or more of the
following conditions is fulfilled:
(a)
the intermediary has the authority to bind the supplier or the customer of the
exempt insurance or financial service;
The second criterion to be applied is to examine whether the service provided contained
the possibility to oblige the supplier or the client of the exempt insurance or financial
service contractually; where this is the case, the service qualifies as intermediation;
where this is not the case, the second criterion under b) needs to be verified.
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