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Klaus
Konle v Austria,case 302/97, 1
June 1999
Facts: In the
province of Tirol,
local authorities requested proof from those who wanted to buy local property
that they would not use the property as a secondary residence. The rule applied
with equal effect to Austrians and foreigners, but closer examination showed
that foreigners were more frequently rejected.
Holding: Article 56 EC (ex Article 73b) and Article
70 of the Act concerning the conditions of accession of the
Republic of Austria preclude
a scheme such as that introduced by the Tiroler Grundverkehrsgesetz 1996
Reasoning: National legislation on the acquisition of land
must comply with the provisions on the Treaty on freedom of establishment for nationals
of Member States and the free movement of capital. The right to acquire, use or
dispose of immovable property on the territory of another
Member State
is the corollary of freedom of establishment (Case 305/87 Commission v. Greece
[1989] ECR 1461, paragraph 22).
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