Abstract
In 1670, France implemented a tax on all imports known as the octroi de mer in Martinique, a Caribbean island in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies. The octroi de mer outlived France’s colonial rule over Martinique, and today, it is imposed on both imported and locally produced products. This Comment argues that the octroi de mer system undermines the integrity and coherence of the European Union’s (EU) legal order, violating Article 349 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU or Treaty) because its very nature is contrary to the fundamental principles of the EU internal market and the free movement of goods. This Comment first considers how the octroi de mer system can be interpreted as a charge of equivalent effect to a customs duty prohibited by the TFEU.
Alternatively, it argues that it may constitute prohibited discriminatory internal taxation. In any event, this Comment asserts that the continued renewal of the octroi de mer derogation scheme is incompatible with Article 27 of the TFEU. Lastly, this Comment posits that the very nature of the octroi de mer scheme undermines the integrity of the internal market, rendering it inconsistent with the TFEU’s object and purpose under the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (Vienna Convention). This Comment recommends that France and the EU initiate a gradual system to phase out the octroi de mer in Martinique.
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