Las ayudas de estado en la Unión Europea: concepto, requisitos e implicaciones

Abstract

The EU rules on state aids, primarily contained in articles 107, 108 and 109 of the TFEU is, with the Principle of Non-Fiscal Discrimination, one of the fundamental pillars of the common market and the EU taxation, preventing States members to give aids to companies, including under this term the fiscal measures, that allow them to be placed at an advantage over its competitors.
However, the State aid regime is complex and, in addition, the jurisprudence of the ECJ has refined and clarified the provisions of the Treaty.
For these reasons, this paper provides a definition of the concept of State aid extensive and accurate for, later, study in detail each of the requirements that a national measure must meet to be qualified as State aid. In addition, it also discusses the implications of the fact that a national measure is considered as such.
Finally, a brief reflection is offered on the relationship between the concept of State aid and the Principle of Non-Fiscal Discrimination, as a result of the relatively recent JCJEU 17.11.2009, Presidente del Consiglio dei Ministri, Case C-169/08.