Apple Must Repay $14.5 Billion in Back Taxes, EU Commission Rules

[JosephAW]

Vote Irexit Now!

 

[oliversl]

Payback time!

 

[Zarniwoop]

Fortunately, by the time this issue makes its way through the courts Ireland will no longer be a part of the EU. Brexit, it seems, was an excellent idea. The EU doesn't work.

Apple and other tech companies would have Dingo's kidneys interest in Ireland, if it was not part of EU to exploite its open doors to the huge market.

Populist nonsense. Ireland just abused its membership in the single market area. Now its payback time.

 

[citysnaps]

This is a deal Ireland has made for Apple - not Apple making a massive tax fraud. EU is interfering with the individual country tax system (to be honest I'm not in the details) which sounds a lot like many of the reasons The UK voted out.

Nobody should cheat, but this sounds like it isn't on Apple (get presented with a good deal by a country and accepting it isn't a crime) but more like the country it self

Yup. Funny how so many reflexively jump on Apple about this. Shocked. Not...

 

[k995]

Vote Irexit Now!

Yeah ireland that is one of the biggest net recievers of the EU and that was rescued by EU when its banks were collapsing is going to get out of the EU for a company that barely pays any taxes.
[doublepost=1472571776][/doublepost]

Fortunately, by the time this issue makes its way through the courts Ireland will no longer be a part of the EU. Brexit, it seems, was an excellent idea. The EU doesn't work.

Since when is ireland part of brittain?
[doublepost=1472571901][/doublepost]

So you can focus on one thing — a low tax rate — and claim that Apple contributes nothing to society, or you can imagine a world where Apple didn't even exist. Just imagine that one... we'd all be using floppy disks and push-button phones still. Which would you want to live in?

Yeah because no other company but aple could have made those products being used? Please as you yourself almost say apple used what was there, and its very good at that . But dont kid yourself those products would have goten to market anyhow with or without apple.

So no apple basicly contributed very little to society itself.
[doublepost=1472572024][/doublepost]

Yup. Funny how so many reflexively jump on Apple about this. Shocked. Not...

Apple is only capable of doing this because of its size, its the difference between someone rich enough to buy legal drugs and someone in jail for being not rich enough to afford those and going for what the gov deemed illegal.

 

[cube]

"Vestiges"?

Seems like autocorrect at so-called work.

 

[jnpy!$4g3cwk]

Very well said. No wonder UK left the EU. No bureau has the rightful place of dictating other country's terms of business(setup for disaster). I don't understand why any county would want to be dictated by any particular one group. That my friends, is how freedoms are snatched. (Hence our own federal government, less and less freedom here).

Part of being a common free trade area is being a common tax area. The two have to go together.

 

[cube]

Where is this Head Office registered? The Cloud?

 

[btrach144]

If I have to pay taxes then so should big business.

 

[Otaviano]

Fortunately, by the time this issue makes its way through the courts Ireland will no longer be a part of the EU. Brexit, it seems, was an excellent idea. The EU doesn't work.

What the heck are you blabbing about. Brexit has not even started. So saying it "was" an excellent idea is impossible. The consequences (negative or positive) have yet to been seen.

 

[cube]

I can't wait for the next Michael Moore movie.

Not available on iTunes.

 

[Otaviano]

Paying the tax rate they pay when all other companies (especially Irish ones) in Ireland have to pay a much higher tax rate is just plain wrong.

Tim Cook can split hairs and make the case they legally pay what they owe, but it is still morally wrong.

Pay your fair share like everyone else.

 

[Kabeyun]

This is not a loophole per se. It's illegal state aid. Considering the contract between Ireland and Apple has been voided, it's just like it never existed and thus they should pay the difference they owe.

Apple was following Irish law. To the letter. The law wasn't crafted specifically for Apple with Apple execs and Irish government officials around a back room table. If the EU wants to punish Ireland for going rogue with their corporate tax policy, fine. Not Apple's fault.

 

[twietee]

Where is this Head Office registered? The Cloud?

"Currently Not Available"

 

[cube]

Apple was following Irish law. To the letter. The law wasn't crafted specifically for Apple with Apple execs and Irish government officials around a back room table. If the EU wants to punish Ireland for going rogue with their corporate tax policy, fine. Not Apple's fault.

The EU is protecting its citizens. Who is going to gift 13B to Ireland?

 

[Zarniwoop]

The EU is protecting its citizens. Who is going to gift 13B to Ireland?

This EU decision was slap in the face of Ireland not being playing with the band. Ireland is in a tight spot; either get sued by EU or Apple... and the rest of the loophole abusers.

Being part of a common free trade area you have to respect others in the club. Ireland didn't... and if they've built their economy on a fraud, this is not going to end well.

Apple's statement was quite weird... that EU is violating the rights of a sovereign country. Hah, now look how's talking.

Ireland has signed by their government to agree the rules of a common free trade area. There's no violation here if EU says that Ireland is playing with their own rules and not the common ones...

 

[cube]

WWDTD?

 

[thewitt]

There is noting wrong with a country setting up special tax breaks to entice businesses to locate there. It's done every day all over the world - including in every major city and state in the US.

 

[TheAppleFairy]

There is noting wrong with a country setting up special tax breaks to entice businesses to locate there. It's done every day all over the world - including in every major city and state in the US.

Agreed, the USA should lower their rates to entice US businesses to stay here. People are complaining about their tax rates to justify making Apple pay more. They should be complaining that they want to pay less like Apple, not the Apple pay more.

 

[cube]

Agreed, the USA should lower their rates to entice US businesses to stay here. People are complaining about their tax rates to justify making Apple pay more. They should be complaining that they want to pay less like Apple, not the Apple pay more.

How can a country function if everybody pays only 0.005% income tax?

 

[burgman]

There is noting wrong with a country setting up special tax breaks to entice businesses to locate there. It's done every day all over the world - including in every major city and state in the US.

Forgetting that taxpayers must make up the difference, how many jobs did this create in Ireland do the maths of taxpayer cost per job. Saying there is nothing wrong is just silly.
[doublepost=1472577493][/doublepost]

Agreed, the USA should lower their rates to entice US businesses to stay here. People are complaining about their tax rates to justify making Apple pay more. They should be complaining that they want to pay less like Apple, not the Apple pay more.

Are you talking paper rates or what USA companies actually pay? With all of the schemes like this and many others, those two numbers aren't even close for large businesses. Small business who can't afford lobby groups have to pay higher rates.

 

[TheAppleFairy]

How can a country function if everybody pays only 0.005% income tax?

Stop wasting money....Our federal government waste so much money. We don't have a revenue problem we have a spending problem.
[doublepost=1472577714][/doublepost]

Small business who can't afford lobby groups have to pay higher rates.

I am all for a flat rate or fair tax with no loopholes....but at a much lower rate than the paper rate now.

 

[cube]

Stop wasting money....Our federal government waste so much money. We don't have a revenue problem we have a spending problem.

Typical conservative handwaving.

 

[jennyp]

Apart from how much tax people think Apple should or should not be paying, surely it's up to the Irish government, via its people, to say what its tax laws are, not the EU, who are completely unelected.

 

[cube]

Apart from how much tax people think Apple should or should not be paying, surely it's up to the Irish government, via its people, to say what its tax laws are, not the EU, who are completely unelected.

The EU is a democracy.

This is similar to the US telling NC that a law is invalid.