The China Mail - EU battles in court to overturn Apple tax bill ruling

USD -
AED 3.672904
AFN 69.503991
ALL 83.658384
AMD 382.620403
ANG 1.789783
AOA 917.000367
ARS 1317.235277
AUD 1.540104
AWG 1.80125
AZN 1.70397
BAM 1.685947
BBD 2.013275
BDT 121.554058
BGN 1.668705
BHD 0.376029
BIF 2965
BMD 1
BND 1.288738
BOB 6.907252
BRL 5.422204
BSD 0.999612
BTN 87.418646
BWP 13.441372
BYN 3.366751
BYR 19600
BZD 2.00537
CAD 1.38345
CDF 2866.000362
CHF 0.801819
CLF 0.024489
CLP 960.703912
CNY 7.16775
CNH 7.17073
COP 4012
CRC 504.202405
CUC 1
CUP 26.5
CVE 94.450394
CZK 20.923204
DJF 177.720393
DKK 6.36904
DOP 62.650393
DZD 129.503881
EGP 48.361977
ERN 15
ETB 141.765474
EUR 0.853104
FJD 2.261504
FKP 0.745437
GBP 0.739481
GEL 2.69504
GGP 0.745437
GHS 11.000356
GIP 0.745437
GMD 72.503851
GNF 8665.931073
GTQ 7.665121
GYD 209.038209
HKD 7.81515
HNL 26.14951
HRK 6.427704
HTG 130.796086
HUF 337.340388
IDR 16233.5
ILS 3.368604
IMP 0.745437
INR 87.33025
IQD 1309.242625
IRR 42050.000352
ISK 122.380386
JEP 0.745437
JMD 160.241712
JOD 0.70904
JPY 146.96904
KES 129.203801
KGS 87.427404
KHR 4008.361528
KMF 422.503794
KPW 899.968769
KRW 1384.203789
KWD 0.30539
KYD 0.832963
KZT 537.321667
LAK 21661.343781
LBP 89947.374546
LKR 301.674051
LRD 200.418076
LSL 17.635898
LTL 2.95274
LVL 0.60489
LYD 5.423857
MAD 9.046609
MDL 16.837704
MGA 4426.39979
MKD 53.04898
MMK 2099.610431
MNT 3597.28806
MOP 8.050859
MRU 39.863455
MUR 46.110378
MVR 15.410378
MWK 1733.250005
MXN 18.598504
MYR 4.227504
MZN 63.903729
NAD 17.635898
NGN 1535.370377
NIO 36.78258
NOK 10.05555
NPR 139.867422
NZD 1.704159
OMR 0.383468
PAB 0.999582
PEN 3.509732
PGK 4.224745
PHP 56.499504
PKR 283.58447
PLN 3.63912
PYG 7244.452873
QAR 3.643487
RON 4.310604
RSD 99.996587
RUB 80.326581
RWF 1446.88921
SAR 3.752314
SBD 8.217016
SCR 13.325152
SDG 600.503676
SEK 9.498104
SGD 1.281304
SHP 0.785843
SLE 23.303667
SLL 20969.49797
SOS 571.256169
SRD 38.108504
STD 20697.981008
STN 21.119779
SVC 8.746099
SYP 13002.323746
SZL 17.628019
THB 32.360369
TJS 9.546021
TMT 3.5
TND 2.935021
TOP 2.342104
TRY 41.175038
TTD 6.787638
TWD 30.382304
TZS 2490.000335
UAH 41.313541
UGX 3561.915435
UYU 40.006207
UZS 12408.840922
VES 137.956904
VND 26350
VUV 120.302159
WST 2.707429
XAF 565.443614
XAG 0.025695
XAU 0.000297
XCD 2.70255
XCG 1.80156
XDR 0.702356
XOF 565.446051
XPF 102.805027
YER 240.203589
ZAR 17.449285
ZMK 9001.203584
ZMW 23.114686
ZWL 321.999592
  • RBGPF

    1.6300

    75.55

    +2.16%

  • CMSD

    0.2400

    23.95

    +1%

  • BCC

    6.5500

    91.22

    +7.18%

  • SCS

    0.4000

    16.5

    +2.42%

  • NGG

    -0.0200

    71.41

    -0.03%

  • GSK

    0.1100

    40.19

    +0.27%

  • RIO

    1.3900

    62.69

    +2.22%

  • BCE

    -0.2300

    25.49

    -0.9%

  • RELX

    0.2500

    48.44

    +0.52%

  • BTI

    -0.7600

    58.51

    -1.3%

  • CMSC

    0.3000

    23.75

    +1.26%

  • JRI

    0.1200

    13.45

    +0.89%

  • VOD

    0.0600

    11.92

    +0.5%

  • RYCEF

    0.1300

    14.29

    +0.91%

  • AZN

    0.5100

    80.97

    +0.63%

  • BP

    0.6900

    34.74

    +1.99%

EU battles in court to overturn Apple tax bill ruling
EU battles in court to overturn Apple tax bill ruling / Photo: © AFP/File

EU battles in court to overturn Apple tax bill ruling

Apple and Brussels butted heads in a top EU court on Tuesday as the bloc battled to overturn a ruling against its whopping 13-billion euro order on the iPhone-maker to pay Ireland in back taxes.

Text size:

The landmark case remains one of the most bitter between the European Commission and a big tech firm, dating back to 2016 when the EU's executive arm accused Ireland of allowing Apple to escape 13 billion euros ($14 billion) in taxes between 2003 and 2014.

The EU alleged that Apple parked untaxed revenue earned in Europe, Africa, the Middle East and India in Ireland, which is a European hub for US-based big tech.

Brussels claims this amounted to illegal "state aid" by Ireland.

On Tuesday, the bloc's highest court heard the commission's appeal against a 2020 decision by the EU's lower General Court to annul its order that Apple repay the money.

The commission's lawyer, Paul-John Loewenthal, told the European Court of Justice (ECJ) that there had been a "breach of procedure" and "numerous other legal errors" when the lower court heard the case.

He also said the "tax breaks" resulted in Apple's Irish subsidiary "paying an effective tax rate on its European profits starting at one percent in 2003 down to 0.005 percent in 2014".

"Tax breaks which Apple itself described (to the US Senate) as investment incentives amounting to state aid," Loewenthal said.

Apple's lawyer Daniel Beard pushed back against Loewenthal's claims.

"Apple has paid the taxes that were due under the Irish tax code," Beard said.

"Taking quotes to the US Senate completely out of context doesn't change that."

The lawyer dismissed Brussels' accusations of illegal support from Ireland, insisting "there was no special treatment, there was no state aid".

Apple has been present in Ireland since the 1980s and employs more than 6,000 people in Cork, the country's second-largest city.

The ECJ's top legal advisor will issue an opinion on November 9, with a final ruling expected a few months later by judges that are not bound by the advice.

The EU has faced difficulty justifying its tax decisions in recent years with previous court losses against Amazon and Starbucks.

O.Yip--ThChM