Apple May Be Fined $13.1 Billion

The EU Court of Justice discovered legal mistakes in the initial EU General Court ruling, which might lead to a €13.1 billion punishment for Apple in Ireland.

The latest ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union might require Apple to pay Ireland €13.1bn, a huge sum for the tech giant. Apple owes this sum for taxes that were due between 2003 and 2014.

With an effective corporation tax rate of 1% compared to Ireland’s regular rate of 12.5%, Apple was accused by the European Commission in 2016 of receiving illicit tax advantages in Ireland. Apple and the Irish government both went to court to fight this ruling.

The EU Court of Justice discovered legal mistakes in the ruling that were previously reversed by the General Court of the European Union and has requested for a review. Ireland’s Finance Minister Michael McGrath has said that Apple has never received any governmental help from Ireland.

The parties are now waiting for the EU General Court’s updated ruling. The whole €13.1bn will be kept in escrow until all legal processes are complete if the ruling favours the European Commission.

As the EU works to fight tax evasion and provide a fair playing field, this underlines the ongoing conflicts between multinational firms and European tax authorities.