Ireland won’t be sued over Apple’s giant tax bill

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Apple's headquarters in Cork, Ireland.
Apple's headquarters in Cork, Ireland.
Photo: Jan Zuppinger/Flickr CC

The European Commission has decided that it won’t sue Ireland over delays in recovering a 13.1 billion euro ($15 billion) disputed tax bill from Apple.

The European Court of Justice action against Ireland was initiated in October 2017 after the country failed to get Apple to pay up one year after the European Union handed Apple the massive tax bill.

The bill was issued to Apple claiming that it took advantage of illegal state aid that allowed it to route profits through Ireland. The investigation alleged that Apple paid the equivalent of as little as 0.005 percent on all European profits in 2014. But when Ireland dragged its heels collecting the cash, the threat of legal action was raised.

At the time that that the European Court of Justice action was taken, European Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said that,“We understand that recovery in certain cases maybe more complex than in others, and we are always ready to assist. But [EU] member states need to make sufficient progress to restore competition.”

If the case had proceeded against Ireland, it could have received a fine for failure to collect the money.

Ultimately, however, Apple paid up. This year, the company deposited a total of 14.3 billion euros into an account, where it will be held in escrow until the case is completed. This sum includes both the 13.1 billion original sum and 1.2 billion euros of interest.

“Taking into account that the payment into the escrow fund of the illegal aid removed the distortion of competition caused by that aid, the Commission has today decided to withdraw the court action,” a statement from the European Commission said today.

Source: RTE.ie

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