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Apple Ordered to Pay $14.5 Billion in EU Tax

blaxshep

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Apple Inc. was ordered to pay as much as 13 billion euros ($14.5 billion) plus interest after the European Commission said Ireland illegally slashed the iPhone maker’s tax bill, in a record crackdown on fiscal loopholes that also risks inflaming tensions with the U.S.

The world’s richest company benefited from selective tax treatment that gave it an unfair advantage over other businesses, the European Union regulator said Tuesday. It’s the largest tax penalty in a three-year campaign against corporate tax avoidance. Apple and Ireland both vowed to fight the decision in the EU courts.

Apple, which employs about 6,000 people in Ireland, was one of the first companies caught up in the EU’s backlash against corporate tax-avoidance. The EU, like other global regulators, has targeted firms that sidestep taxes by moving around profits and costs to wherever they are taxed most advantageously -- exploiting loopholes or special deals granted by friendly governments.

While 13 billion euros is the highest ever sought by the EU in a state-aid case, it is unlikely to leave the company short of money. As of last month, Apple had $232 billion in cash, with about $214 billion of that being held overseas. Apple generated about $4.45 billion a month last year, meaning the decision would eat up about 3 months of profit.

Apple was allowed to allocate almost all sales profits to a head office that “only existed on paper.” This head office “has no employees, it has no premises, and it has no real activities,” she said. “The head office was subject to no tax in Ireland or elsewhere.”

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Apple Ordered to Pay Up to $14.5 Billion in EU Tax Clampdown - Bloomberg
 
There were a couple of threads on this, including this one

http://www.debatepolitics.com/europe/262793-apple-face-huge-tax-bill.html

I think in the end, it looks like Ireland violated its agreement with the EU when it gave Apple an unauthorized deal on taxes. Now the EU wants its money. Don't know how this is going to pan out for Apple. They may have some legal defense along the lines of Ireland had offered the deal and thus Ireland, not Apple, was in the wrong. But who knows how the EU will end up handling this.

Apple has been pretty shady in general with trying to shuffle their office and operations around to avoid tax liabilities.
 
Apple has been pretty shady in general with trying to shuffle their office and operations around to avoid tax liabilities.

They are not the only ones, my company does it too. I'll bet most of the fortune 500 does.
 
Apple Inc. was ordered to pay as much as 13 billion euros ($14.5 billion) plus interest after the European Commission said Ireland illegally slashed the iPhone maker’s tax bill, in a record crackdown on fiscal loopholes that also risks inflaming tensions with the U.S.

The world’s richest company benefited from selective tax treatment that gave it an unfair advantage over other businesses, the European Union regulator said Tuesday. It’s the largest tax penalty in a three-year campaign against corporate tax avoidance. Apple and Ireland both vowed to fight the decision in the EU courts.

Apple, which employs about 6,000 people in Ireland, was one of the first companies caught up in the EU’s backlash against corporate tax-avoidance. The EU, like other global regulators, has targeted firms that sidestep taxes by moving around profits and costs to wherever they are taxed most advantageously -- exploiting loopholes or special deals granted by friendly governments.

While 13 billion euros is the highest ever sought by the EU in a state-aid case, it is unlikely to leave the company short of money. As of last month, Apple had $232 billion in cash, with about $214 billion of that being held overseas. Apple generated about $4.45 billion a month last year, meaning the decision would eat up about 3 months of profit.

Apple was allowed to allocate almost all sales profits to a head office that “only existed on paper.” This head office “has no employees, it has no premises, and it has no real activities,” she said. “The head office was subject to no tax in Ireland or elsewhere.”

View attachment 67206693

Apple Ordered to Pay Up to $14.5 Billion in EU Tax Clampdown - Bloomberg

Actually, I found most interesting that the EU is interpreting a Constitutional clause giving the EU authority to act in respect to subsidies to grant it authority to restrict freedom of taxation which it is not constitutionally permitted. They are using latent anti-Americanism and anti-corporate feelings in the population to push through a shift in sovereignty to Brussels and away from national governments. This combined with the desire by France and Germany to grab part of the taxes and business that has gone to places like Ireland or Holland by tax competition they seem to think might give them a window of opportunity to deepen the union.
 
Actually, I found most interesting that the EU is interpreting a Constitutional clause giving the EU authority to act in respect to subsidies to grant it authority to restrict freedom of taxation which it is not constitutionally permitted. They are using latent anti-Americanism and anti-corporate feelings in the population to push through a shift in sovereignty to Brussels and away from national governments. This combined with the desire by France and Germany to grab part of the taxes and business that has gone to places like Ireland or Holland by tax competition they seem to think might give them a window of opportunity to deepen the union.

This is why I can't vote for Hillary. Obama and his ilk are liberal globalists, they can't wait to sell out our Sovereignty to the EU. Soros Utopia.

But I do like that Apple is getting what it deserves for tax evasion.
 
Apple Inc. was ordered to pay as much as 13 billion euros ($14.5 billion) plus interest after the European Commission said Ireland illegally slashed the iPhone maker’s tax bill, in a record crackdown on fiscal loopholes that also risks inflaming tensions with the U.S.

The world’s richest company benefited from selective tax treatment that gave it an unfair advantage over other businesses, the European Union regulator said Tuesday. It’s the largest tax penalty in a three-year campaign against corporate tax avoidance. Apple and Ireland both vowed to fight the decision in the EU courts.

Apple, which employs about 6,000 people in Ireland, was one of the first companies caught up in the EU’s backlash against corporate tax-avoidance. The EU, like other global regulators, has targeted firms that sidestep taxes by moving around profits and costs to wherever they are taxed most advantageously -- exploiting loopholes or special deals granted by friendly governments.

While 13 billion euros is the highest ever sought by the EU in a state-aid case, it is unlikely to leave the company short of money. As of last month, Apple had $232 billion in cash, with about $214 billion of that being held overseas. Apple generated about $4.45 billion a month last year, meaning the decision would eat up about 3 months of profit.

Apple was allowed to allocate almost all sales profits to a head office that “only existed on paper.” This head office “has no employees, it has no premises, and it has no real activities,” she said. “The head office was subject to no tax in Ireland or elsewhere.”

View attachment 67206693

Apple Ordered to Pay Up to $14.5 Billion in EU Tax Clampdown - Bloomberg

Headline is wrong .. it is not an EU tax. It is Irish tax.
 
Then why ---

If it was an Irish tax why would it fight the EU in court?

You really dont understand anything do you?

The Irish want to defend its ability to do these illegal state aid deals with random companies. It aint defending Apple or anything.

Regardless, the Irish governments stance as you know it, was made by the Economic Minister and since he made that statement, he has been forced to take it back because the rest of the Irish government and its political backers are not of the same mind and need convincing. It is hard to explain to the Irish taxpayer "we dont want 13 billion"....
 
This is why I can't vote for Hillary. Obama and his ilk are liberal globalists, they can't wait to sell out our Sovereignty to the EU. Soros Utopia.

But I do like that Apple is getting what it deserves for tax evasion.

But Apple did not evade taxes. It optimized cash flows and corporate structure as the competing jurisdiction structured the taxes. They did for the stockholders, what the law requires them to do. It is not their fault alone that the laws are, what they are.
 
You really dont understand anything do you?

The Irish want to defend its ability to do these illegal state aid deals with random companies. It aint defending Apple or anything.

Regardless, the Irish governments stance as you know it, was made by the Economic Minister and since he made that statement, he has been forced to take it back because the rest of the Irish government and its political backers are not of the same mind and need convincing. It is hard to explain to the Irish taxpayer "we dont want 13 billion"....

You are misrepresenting that. The EU has no mandate to enforce or change tax regulations in the member countries. That is a sovereignty the treaties withheld.
So they are trying to underhandedly circumvent the treaty by claiming it is a subsidy and not a tax issue. In financial theory that is quite correct in a certain way. Subsidies can be interpreted as opposite of taxes. But the treaty consciously treated the two separately and excluded taxes in individual states from the EU mandate.

What the EU can do is decide unanimously to harmonize certain taxes. But unanimous would mean that Ireland, Austria, Holland, Luxemburg..... would all have to agree.
 
You are misrepresenting that. The EU has no mandate to enforce or change tax regulations in the member countries.

And in this case they are not. The deal that Apple had with Ireland was abandoned by Apple a year ago. Wonder why?

What they have done is say that the arrangement was a hidden state aid program, and THAT is illegal. It is no different than declaring lower taxes for football clubs as illegal state aid, and these clubs have to pay back millions in taxes they owe. Funny how no one complained when the EU did that eh?

So they are trying to underhandedly circumvent the treaty by claiming it is a subsidy and not a tax issue. In financial theory that is quite correct in a certain way. Subsidies can be interpreted as opposite of taxes. But the treaty consciously treated the two separately and excluded taxes in individual states from the EU mandate.

They are not trying to circumvent anything. State aid comes in many different forms, including tax breaks. Now state aid can be approved by the EU, including tax incentives.. but only if that state aid does not disrupt the marketplace and give one company an advantage over another. Apple knows this.. Ireland knows this. It has been a principle for decades in the EEC/EU.

Also a principle of tax law in almost every country, is that we are all equal under the law. In this case there was one law for Apple and one for the rest of "us". That is breaking the EU treaty and Irish law on so many levels.. not to mention basic morality.

What the EU can do is decide unanimously to harmonize certain taxes. But unanimous would mean that Ireland, Austria, Holland, Luxemburg..... would all have to agree.

Again you show how LITTLE you know of the EU. The EU cant do jack **** as an organisation... the member nations can agree on something and the EU has to carry it out. Now in this case harmonization of certain taxes is a non issue (other than internet VAT), because there are countries that oppose it. Hence it is a non starter. You should know this if you actually knew anything about the EU and how the process goes.
 
And in this case they are not. The deal that Apple had with Ireland was abandoned by Apple a year ago. Wonder why?

What they have done is say that the arrangement was a hidden state aid program, and THAT is illegal. It is no different than declaring lower taxes for football clubs as illegal state aid, and these clubs have to pay back millions in taxes they owe. Funny how no one complained when the EU did that eh?



They are not trying to circumvent anything. State aid comes in many different forms, including tax breaks. Now state aid can be approved by the EU, including tax incentives.. but only if that state aid does not disrupt the marketplace and give one company an advantage over another. Apple knows this.. Ireland knows this. It has been a principle for decades in the EEC/EU.

Also a principle of tax law in almost every country, is that we are all equal under the law. In this case there was one law for Apple and one for the rest of "us". That is breaking the EU treaty and Irish law on so many levels.. not to mention basic morality.



Again you show how LITTLE you know of the EU. The EU cant do jack **** as an organisation... the member nations can agree on something and the EU has to carry it out. Now in this case harmonization of certain taxes is a non issue (other than internet VAT), because there are countries that oppose it. Hence it is a non starter. You should know this if you actually knew anything about the EU and how the process goes.

I do not agree, but it is too hot to bother about explaining things to the bellicose today.
 
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