Sam Oliver
As a European Union investigation into the tax arrangements of a number of multinational companies — including Apple, Starbucks, and Fiat — gets underway, Apple has issued a statement in which the iPhone maker categorically denied any wrongdoing.
"Apple pays every euro of every tax that we owe," the company told Bloomberg. "We have received no selective treatment from Irish officials. Apple is subject to the same tax laws as scores of other international companies doing business in Ireland."
Together with the American coffee chain and Italian automaker, Apple is facing an investigation by the European Commission into whether the corporations' tax arrangements — Apple's in Ireland, Starbucks's in the Netherlands, and Fiat's in Luxembourg — comply with EU rules concerning state aid. According to the policy, tax agreements that selectively favor certain companies are incompatible with the "EU Single Market" and should not be allowed.
Wednesday's statement is similar to remarks made by Apple chief Tim Cook in advance of a hearing before the U.S. Senate last year. That hearing was called to investigate the process by which major U.S.-based corporations keep profits earned overseas offshore, avoiding the costly tax bill that would come with repatriation.
"I can tell you unequivocally," Cook said at the time, "Apple does not funnel its domestic profits overseas. We don't do that. We pay taxes on all the products we sell in the U.S., and we pay every dollar that we owe. And so I'd like to be really clear on that."
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59 Comments
I wish they wouldn't make carefully phrased, weaselly comments like this, it just makes then seem sleazy. Of course they're dodging taxes, using legal means. Of course they are exploiting conditions in Ireland that allow me to pay minimal tax due to the "controlling domicile" rule, even if other companies can also exploit that loophole. And of course they can claim to not fund their [i]domestic[/i] profits into tax havens, they do that to their much larger [i]international[/i] profits. The fact is that all this is legal, so the attempt to deflect just makes it look more like they have something to hide, whether they do or don't.
I wish they wouldn't make carefully phrased, weaselly comments like this, it just makes then seem sleazy.
Of course they're dodging taxes, using legal means.
Of course they are exploiting conditions in Ireland that allow me to pay minimal tax due to the "controlling domicile" rule, even if other companies can also exploit that loophole.
And of course they can claim to not fund their domestic profits into tax havens, they do that to their much larger international profits.
The fact is that all this is legal, so the attempt to deflect just makes it look more like they have something to hide, whether they do or don't.
Of course they are NOT dodging taxing because they are using 100% (so far) legal means.
Of course Ireland offers great deals to companies using 100% legal means that many companies take advantage of.
It is sad the EU has so little control over fiscal policies of the member states all they can do is makeup laws that don't exist and cry about things while trying to lay the blame for their general incompetence at the feet of others.
"Dodge" does not imply illegality. "Evade" is the word that implies illegality. Dodging, or any other synonym for avoidance is exactly what Apple is doing.
Hit 'em hard Apple, or they'll invade your offices and invent charges and fraudulent laws to extract money you do not owe.
[quote name="Steven N." url="/t/180572/apple-denies-dodging-eu-taxes-receiving-special-treatment-from-irish-authorities#post_2549192"] It is sad the EU has so little control over fiscal policies of the member states all they can do is makeup laws that don't exist and cry about things while trying to lay the blame for their general incompetence at the feet of others. [/quote] Cry me a river and give me strength, the EU is doing none of this! If they had intimate control of the tax policies of member states that would make it an entirely different institution, and it's got nothing to do with incompetence. They aren't making up laws, they aren't crying about anything and they aren't blaming anyone; they're holding an investigation. But hey, companies can do no wrong and governments can do no right, right? Sheesh!