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Irish cabinet may need more time to decide on Apple appeal- minister

Neil Wilson, markets analyst at ETX Capital, said: “The European Commission seems to be treading very close to interfering with the tax rules of member states, effectively telling Ireland how much tax it ought to levy”. Here are some key questions surrounding the decision.

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What has the commission ruled?

“The issue is that the consequences for that transfer would be that it could be treated in the USA tax system as a current tax payment that would allow Apple to deduct that European Union tax payment from their United States taxes”, he said. Apple and Ireland rejected the accusation.

Noonan said Tuesday in a statement issued minutes after the judgment: “I disagree profoundly with the commission’s decision”.

The EU had said Apple had avoided virtually all tax on its business in the bloc by illegal arrangements with Dublin which gave the company an unfair advantage over competitors, according to media reports.

What period of time does the ruling cover?

How have Apple and Ireland reacted?

“This is due to Apple’s decision to record all sales in Ireland rather than in the countries where the products were sold”.

“The Commission’s investigation concluded that Ireland granted illegal tax benefits to Apple, which enabled it to pay substantially less tax than other businesses over many years”.

Both senators have called for USA tax reforms forcing giant companies like Apple to pay more taxes in America. “It will have a profound and harmful effect on investment and job creation in Europe”.

Washington has made increasingly angry comments over the case in recent weeks, and on Tuesday it echoed Apple’s warnings that the tax bill could hurt the European economy. “We are confident that the Commission’s order will be reversed”.

“Our tax system is founded on the strict application of the law, as enacted by the Oireachtas, without exception”, Noonan said.

What has the US Treasury said?

U.S. Representative Kevin Brady, Republican chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, called the decision “a predatory and naked tax grab”. “We will continue to monitor these cases as they progress, and we will continue to work with the commission toward our shared objective of preventing the erosion of our corporate tax bases.?”

Can Apple afford to pay the bill?

Easily. As of last month, Apple had $232 billion in cash, with about $214 billion of that being held overseas.

Who receives the money if Apple ends up paying? In government coffers, that money would easily wipe out Ireland’s 2016 deficit and put the country back in the black for the first time in a decade.

But Vestager said Apple’s Irish operation was a sham – Apple’s ‘so-called head office in Ireland only existed on paper.

It’s not just Apple.

What is the immediate next step? But the main opposition party Fianna Fail, whose support the minority administration relies on to pass laws, said it would support an appeal based on reassurances it had been given by the government.

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He has rejected findings that Ireland cut an especially generous tax-avoidance deal to boost Apple’s investments in Ireland, where the company employs 5,500 and plans to expand further. He said a successful appeal, which could take years, would “provide tax certainty to business”.

Enda clutches his iPhone as he arrives at Government Buildings Pic