Andorra Court Orders Government to Pay Parishes €6,492 in 2017 Tax Dispute

The Superior Court of Justice has ordered the Andorran government to pay the seven parishes €6,492 over 2017 fiscal transfers, confirming the administration's method of using actual tax collections while prompting parishes to drop plans for a Constitutional Court appeal.

Parish officials expressed frustration with the ruling but indicated they will accept it. Encamp's senior consul, Laura Mas, confirmed her parish will not pursue further action, stating it defends the original arguments for legal clarity on the 1993 Qualified Law on Transfers to Parishes but now considers the matter closed. "We accept the sentence and will not appeal to the Constitutional Court," the statement read, adding that the decision also rules out an amparo recourse.

In Ordino, senior consul Maria del Mar Coma hinted at the same outcome, describing a Constitutional challenge as "difficult" and limited to specific grounds not met here. She noted nearly a decade of differing interpretations on transfer calculations, with parishes arguing for billed amounts and the government for cash received. "This was our last recourse, and none of the previous ones ruled in our favour," Coma said.

The dispute stems from Article 3.1 of the 1993 law, requiring 18% of tax revenues "assessed, settled, and accountably allocated to the General Administration Budget, effectively realised in the previous year." Parishes sought €7,573,772.65 initially, or €1,081,408.45 alternatively, based on 2016 billed figures. The court endorsed the government's use of €345,310,989.30 in actual 2016 collections—excluding property transfer and vehicle taxes due to separate parish shares—yielding €62,155,978 owed at 18%. The government paid €62,149,486.55, leaving the €6,492 gap.

The Batllia court backed the government this April. The Superior Court's partial reversal addressed only the calculation error, validating exclusions to avoid accounting overlaps from late collections. The amount will divide among parishes under the 1993 law, likely under €1,000 each.

The 2017 transfers, linked to 2016 income, arose amid shifts promoted under then-head of government Toni Martí. Key initiators included current Presidency Minister Conxita Marsol, formerly Andorra la Vella's senior consul, and Escaldes-Engordany's Rosa Gili.