The standoff between Mediapart and the tax administration is experiencing a new twist.
On November 12, 2020, the Paris Administrative Court of Appeal rendered a judgment annulling the decisions of the Paris Administrative Court of May 2018, in favor of Mediapart.
At the time, the Paris administrative court ruled in favor of the online media against the tax administration.
The latter had demanded payment of 3.3 million euros corresponding to the VAT differential between the rate due for the digital press (20%) and that applied by Mediapart of 2.1% which corresponds to the reduced VAT rate. from which the paperweight benefits.
From its creation in 2010, Mediapart had made equal tax treatment between the digital and paper press its first priority.
The tax administration did not hear it that way and in addition to the differential, had condemned Mediapart to pay a penalty of 1.4 million euros for "willful breach" or bad faith.
Mediapart had paid the 3.3 million euros to the tax authorities but had appealed for the payment of the penalty.
At first instance, the Paris administrative court considered that the penalty was not due, because the State was perfectly aware of Mediapart's desire to benefit from the reduced rate for the paper press.
In July 2018, the Minister of Action and Public Accounts, Gérald Darmanin, appealed the decision to the Paris Administrative Court of Appeal.
Today, the latter believes that Mediapart must pay the penalty.
Europe decision
"We are going to appeal this decision to the Council of State" explains Edwy Plenel to Le Figaro.
"From the creation of our media, we campaigned for the end of the distortion of tax treatment between the digital press and the paper press," he adds.
In February 2014, the Minister of Culture Aurélie Filippetti had established equal treatment by granting the digital press the reduced VAT rate.
And Europe validated this position in October 2018. ”Our fight has been recognized and today the issue is the payment of the penalty.
We believe that we have never been in bad faith ”adds Edwy Plenel.
The Council of State will have to re-judge the entire procedure and assess whether or not Mediapart must pay the VAT differential and the penalty.
Mediapart, now controlled by the Foundation for a Free Press, now has 210,000 paying subscribers.
In 2019, it posted a turnover of 17 million euros and a net profit of 2.3 million.
"And the year 2020 has been very good" according to the founder of the newspaper.
Pending the judgment of the Council of State, the newspaper will quickly pay the penalty that was provisioned in its accounts.