El litigio principal había sido incoado por la empresa de transporte Van Gend Loos, que, al importar mercancías de Alemania en los Países Bajos, debía liquidar derechos de aduana que consideraba contrarios a la norma del Tratado CEE por la que se prohibía a los Estados miembros incrementar los derechos de aduana en sus relaciones comerciales recíprocas.
The case in the main proceedings had been brought by the transport company Van Gend en Loos, which, when importing goods from Germany into the Netherlands, was required to pay customs duties which it considered to be contrary to the rules of the EEC Treaty prohibiting Member States from increasing customs duties in their mutual commercial dealings.
