Mikey Campbell
Apple CEO Tim Cook on Friday addressed employees at the company's European headquarters in Cork, Ireland before meeting with Prime Minister Enda Kenny to discuss EU tax regulations and ongoing operations in the country.
In a private meeting with the Taoiseach, or prime minister of the Republic of Ireland, Cook discussed possible expansion of Irish operations, as well as issues regarding EU tax regulations, reports Business ETC.
On the topic of taxes, Kenny went on record as saying Ireland is . The country's corporate tax laws came under scrutiny after it was discovered companies like Apple, Google and Microsoft were exploiting a legal loophole to saves billions of dollars in taxes.
"I pointed out to Cook that Ireland, as a member of the [European] Union, is participating in the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development ) discussions that are taking place now about an international response in terms of clarity about the tax position," Kenny said. "There are fifteen different sectors involving that and Ireland is participating in them all."
In October, Ireland's finance minister called for legislation to close the loophole, which in essence makes multinational corporations "stateless." The Taoiseach is staving off rumors that his government makes special deals with certain large corporations to foster job growth, the publication said.
Cook was reportedly "exceptionally happy" with the work being done in Cork. When asked about possible job expansions at the plant, Kenny reveled little, saying only that Apple was pleased with results so far and "want that to continue."
Apple's European headquarters now has over 4,000 employees, a huge jump from the roughly 2,800 workers accounted for less than two years ago. In 2012, the company announced it would be expanding operations in Europe, which created an additional 500 jobs at the Cork plant.
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90 Comments
The solution here is to tax where value is added. That's hard to work out maybe for most countries but for Apple it's Cupertino.
I believe a lot of European governments are getting together now to close the tax loopholes. The "Double Irish" as they call it.
p.s. isn't there some words missing from article after "Ireland is" ?
FYI: The reason Google's stock has been intentionally run up: Declared Stock Split.
This kind of crap just gets old:
http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/536731/20140131/apple-inc-aapl-australia-taxes.htm#.UuwtWT08eEI
Apple Inc Generates $6 Billion Sales in Australia, Pays Only $36 Million Tax
By Reissa Su | January 31, 2014 6:55 PM EST
Apple Inc has paid $36.4 million in tax for 2013 fiscal year despite declaring revenues of over $6 billion in Australia. The Cupertino-based tech giant generated $52 million after paying $88.5 million, according to The Australian. The company had acquired a net profit after tax from $58.5 million in 2012 to $40.1 million when Apple paid taxes in Australia.
REUTERS/Jonathan Alcorn
Black Friday shoppers walk past an Apple Store inside the Glendale Galleria in Glendale, California November 29, 2013. Black Friday, the day following the Thanksgiving Day holiday, has traditionally been the busiest shopping day in the United States. REUTERS/Jonathan Alcorn
Despite a drop in profits, Apple Inc hit an an all-time high in revenues from $5.99 billion in 2012 to $6.1 billion in 2013. According to documents filed in the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, Apple Inc Australia had paid $154 million dividend to its parent company in the U.S.
Apple Inc Q1 FY2014 earnings summary
Apple Inc has released its Q1 FY 2014 earnings and surpassed analysts' and its own expectations with $57.6 billion sales with earnings per share of $14.50. The Cupertino-based tech giant announced that the company sold 51 million iPhones, 26 million iPads and 4.8 million Macs. The iPhone and iPad sales for Q1 FY 2014 broke records as Apple claimed they were both quarterly and all-time highs.
Apple continues to enjoy strong demand outside of the United States with international sales accounting for 63 per cent of Apple's Q1 FY 2014 revenue.
In a press release, Apple Inc CEO Tim Cook announced the company is "really happy" with record-breaking iPhone and iPad sales, including the strong performance of Macs in the world market. He also acknowledged the continued growth of iTunes, software and services. Mr Cook added that Apple loves having loyal, satisfied and engaged customers.
Chief Financial Officer Peter Oppenheimer stated that Apple was able to generate a cash flow of $22.7 billion from operations. The company returned $7.7 billion in cash to Apple's shareholders by offering dividends and share buybacks. Mr Oppenheimer said cumulative payments under the program have now reached more than $43 billion.
OECD to curb use of corporate tax havens
Apple Inc is one of the several multi-billion dollar companies including Microsoft and Google Australia to be under scrutiny for the use of tax havens to reduce tax payments.
In 2013, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) was asked to develop measures to stop corporations from using tax havens to escape local tax payments.
To contact the editor, e-mail: editor@ibtimes.com
I don't give a rat's ass if you think ``It's legal, no laws were broken'' is ethical. It's getting effing old. These rates are the very reason corporations are strong-holding the direction of all US Policies.
Pay your goddamn share of taxes, not this tax havens for every corporation who can spread them out across the globe!
[quote name="asdasd" url="/t/161853/apples-cook-meets-with-irish-pm-to-discuss-taxes-future-growth-at-european-hq#post_2466217"]The solution here is to tax where value is added. That's hard to work out maybe for most countries but for Apple it's Cupertino.[/quote] I have to disagree with you here. If I buy an app or album from iTunes in the UK, that sale should be counted as being made in the UK, not Ireland. Apple should therefore pay any tax on that sale in the UK. I think this is the only way to stop large multinational companies avoiding their tax liabilities.