According to the facts of case 26/62, Van Gend en Loos (ECR 1963 p. 1, judgment of 5 February 1963), a Dutch company, N.V. Algemene Transport - en expeditie onderneming Van Gend & Loos, imported ureaformaldehyde. On 1st of January 1958, the EEC Treaty entered into force with its Article 12 that at that time stipulated: "Member States shall refrain from introducing, as between themselves, any new customs duties on importation or exportation or charges with equivalent effect and from increasing such duties or charges as they apply in their commercial relations with each other. (NB! – The text and number of Article 12 have been changed by today, the new Article still having direct legal JXUwMDNkJXUwMDAzJXUwMDAwJXUwMDAzJXUwMDA2JXUwMDE3 ).

The Dutch court stayed the proceedings and asked from the European Court of JXUwMDEyJXUwMDNmJXUwMDA2JXUwMDA3JXUwMDFkJXUwMDBhJXUwMDA2 (ECJ) inter alia, whether Article 12 of the EEC Treaty had direct application within the territory of a Member State. The government of the Netherlands expressed the doubt that since agreements entered into by the Netherlands require incorporation into Dutch national law (dualist type of argument – Jan Klabbers), the ECJ may not have jurisdiction to decide whether the provisions of the EEC Treaty prevail over the Netherlands legislation or over other Netherlands agreements.

In order to answer the question, the ECJ considered the spirit, the general scheme and the wording of Article 12. The ECJ explained that the EEC Treaty is more than an JXUwMDM5JXUwMDA2JXUwMDE1JXUwMDE3JXUwMDAwJXUwMDA4JXUwMDA4JXUwMDBiJXUwMDFh which merely creates mutual JXUwMDM3JXUwMDBkJXUwMDBlJXUwMDA1JXUwMDBlJXUwMDA2JXUwMDE1JXUwMDFkJXUwMDA2JXUw MDAxJXUwMDFk between the contracting states - this view is confirmed by the JXUwMDA4JXUwMDIyJXUwMDE3JXUwMDA0JXUwMDBjJXUwMDBmJXUwMDBlJXUwMDA5 to the Treaty which refers not only to governments but to JXUwMDI4JXUwMDE1JXUwMDBhJXUwMDFmJXUwMDFjJXUwMDA5JXUwMDE2 ; it is also confirmed more specifically by the establishment of institutions endowed with sovereign rights, the exercise of which affects Member States and also their JXUwMDNiJXUwMDBhJXUwMDFkJXUwMDFkJXUwMDEzJXUwMDFmJXUwMDBiJXUwMDFk …

The Community constitutes a new JXUwMDM0JXUwMDA5JXUwMDAyJXUwMDA2JXUwMDBk JXUwMDM3JXUwMDFkJXUwMDE2JXUwMDAxJXUwMDE3 of international law for the benefit of which the states have limited their JXUwMDJiJXUwMDFjJXUwMDE5JXUwMDEzJXUwMDE3JXUwMDE3JXUwMDBjJXUwMDBlJXUwMDA5 rights, albeit within limited fields, and the subjects of which comprise not only JXUwMDE1JXUwMDI4JXUwMDA4JXUwMDBmJXUwMDA3JXUwMDE3 JXUwMDBiJXUwMDI3JXUwMDE1JXUwMDE1JXUwMDExJXUwMDE2 but also their nationals. Independently of the legislation of Member States, Community law therefore not only imposes obligations on individuals but is also intended to confer upon them JXUwMDJhJXUwMDFiJXUwMDBlJXUwMDBmJXUwMDFjJXUwMDA3 which become part of their legal heritage. These rights arise not only where they are expressly granted by the Treaty, but also by reason of JXUwMDM3JXUwMDBkJXUwMDBlJXUwMDA1JXUwMDBlJXUwMDA2JXUwMDE1JXUwMDFkJXUwMDA2JXUw MDAxJXUwMDFk which the Treaty imposes in a clearly defined way upon individuals as well as upon the Member States and upon the institutions of the Community …

The wording of Article 12 contains a clear and JXUwMDJkJXUwMDFiJXUwMDBkJXUwMDBjJXUwMDAxJXUwMDBhJXUwMDBkJXUwMDFkJXUwMDFkJXUw MDA2JXUwMDAxJXUwMDBmJXUwMDBk prohibition which is not a positive but a JXUwMDM2JXUwMDBiJXUwMDAyJXUwMDA2JXUwMDE1JXUwMDFkJXUwMDFmJXUwMDEz obligation. This obligation, moreover, is not qualified by any reservation on the part of states which would make its implementation conditional upon a positive legislative measure enacted under national law ...

The implementation of Article 12 does not require any legislative intervention on the part of the States … It follows from the foregoing considerations that, according to the spirit, the general scheme and the JXUwMDJmJXUwMDE4JXUwMDFkJXUwMDE2JXUwMDBkJXUwMDA3JXUwMDA5 of the Treaty, Article 12 must be interpreted as producing direct effects and creating individual JXUwMDJhJXUwMDFiJXUwMDBlJXUwMDBmJXUwMDFjJXUwMDA3 which national courts must protect …

The ECJ also explained that EC law should be applied JXUwMDJkJXUwMDFiJXUwMDA3JXUwMDBmJXUwMDA5JXUwMDFkJXUwMDFmJXUwMDAxJXUwMDE1 (the same way) in all Member States. – If the effect of EU law depends on domestic law, there would be no uniform application of EU law.

Thus, direct effect of EU law does not depend on domestic law, but on EU law itself.