The EU requires Apple to pay a tax of 14.5 billion U.S. dollars, the Irish government and Apple will appeal

The European Union officially ruled on Tuesday that Apple was required to pay Ireland 13 billion euros (about 14.5 billion U.S. dollars) of unpaid taxes. The recovery was the largest amount that Brussels has been authorized to monitor in Europe.

It is reported that in order to stimulate the development of the local economy, the Irish government will reduce corporate income tax to 12.5%. It can also give certain countries and regions a lower tax rate or even tax exemption for specific income, making it practical to set up multinational corporations in branches and subsidiaries in Ireland. The tax burden is much lower than in the United States and other EU countries.

The Commissioner of the EU Competition Commission stated:

Ireland promised Apple tax cuts, reducing Appleâ€™s effective corporate tax from 1% in 2003 to 0.005% in 2014.

Apple has established two subsidiaries in Ireland: Apple Sales International (ASI) and Apple Operations Europe (AOE). Apple International Sales is responsible for sales in Europe, Asia Pacific and Africa. According to Ireland's special taxation arrangements, it allows Apple to split most of the profits of Apple International Sales into a "headquarters," and this "headquarters" does not Not set up in Ireland and any other country, according to Irish law, this "headquarters" is considered as "stateless company", so there is no need to pay taxes to Ireland. Ultimately, Apple simply pays Ireland a small portion of its profits for Apple International Sales. Statistics show that in 2011, Apple International Sales achieved a profit of 16 billion euros, while the Irish subsidiary allocated less than 50 million euros in profits, and the remaining portion was all divided into "headquarters" with tax-free qualifications.

EU officials said that this taxation policy in Ireland provided Apple with a huge financial advantage and constituted an illegal state subsidy.

In this regard, Irish Finance Minister Michael Noonan is extremely opposed to the European Commission's ruling, he said that Ireland will appeal this ruling to maintain the integrity of the country's tax system. The U.S. Department of the Treasury pointed out that it was disappointed with the EU's ruling that Apple should pay taxes. At the same time, Tim Cook published an official letter on Apple's official website. The content is as follows:

Â Cook Open Letter

Thirty-six years ago, long before the iPhone, iPod and even the Mac came out, Steve Jobs founded Apple for the first time in Europe. At the time, the company knew that in order to provide services to European customers, it needed to have a base there. So in October 1980, Apple opened a factory in County Cork, Ireland, and had 60 employees.

At the time, County Cork was suffering a double blow from high unemployment and low economic investment. However, Appleâ€™s leaders see that there is a wealth of human resources here. They believe that if the company has the privilege of success, it will be able to achieve growth.

Since then, we have been operating in County Cork so far, even though our own business has experienced periods of uncertainty. Today, the total number of employees we employ in Ireland has reached nearly 6,000. The vast majority are still in County Cork, including some of the earliest employees. They have played a variety of roles in Apple's global expansion. Numerous multinational corporations follow the footsteps of Apple and invest in County College. Today, the local economy here is more powerful than ever before.

The driving force for the success of Appleâ€™s growth in County Cooke came from innovative products that have won customersâ€™ love. Throughout Europe, these products have helped create and sustain more than 1.5 million jobs, not only from Apple, but also from thousands of creative app developers thriving in the Apple App Store, as well as manufacturers and other supplies. Business. Countless SMEs are dependent on Apple and we are proud to support them.

As a responsible corporate citizen, we are also proud of our contribution to the local economy in all parts of Europe and in every community. With our development over the years, we have become Irelandâ€™s largest taxpayer, the largest taxpayer in the United States, and the worldâ€™s largest taxpayer.

Over the years, like all companies doing business here, we have received guidance from Irish tax authorities and taught us how to properly comply with Irish tax laws. In Ireland and in every country where we operate, Apple follows the law and pays all taxes owed to us.

The European Commission ignored the Irish tax laws and reversed black and white in the international taxation system process, trying to rewrite Apple's history in Europe. On August 30, the organization expressed its opinion that Ireland allowed Apple to implement "specialization" of taxation. This statement lacks factual or legal basis. We have never requested nor received any special deals. Now we find ourselves in awkward position and are required to pay taxes separately to the Irish government in addition to the paid taxes, although we do not owe them anything.

The above actions of the committee are unprecedented and have serious and extensive impact. It effectively proves to the people that the European Commission can replace the Irish tax law, self-righteous, and do whatever it pleases. For EU member states, this will have a devastating impact on their sovereignty over tax issues and even on the principle of certainty in European law. Ireland has stated that it plans to appeal the decision of the European Commission and Apple will do the same. We believe that the committee will recoup its fate.

At its root, the European Commissionâ€™s ruling is not related to how much tax Apple paid, but which government received the money.

The taxation of multinational corporations is complex, but a basic principle is universally acknowledged throughout the world: The profits and taxes of a company should be levied on the value it creates in the country of operation. Apple, Ireland and the United States all agreed on this principle.

In the case of Apple, almost all our research and development are done in California, so most of our profits are taxed in the United States. European companies doing business in the United States are also taxed on the same principles. However, the European Commission now requires retrospective changes and changes in rules.

In addition to making Apple a clear target, this ruling will also have the most profound and detrimental impact on European investment and job creation. According to the committee's theory, every company in Ireland and Europe suddenly faces the risk of being recognized as a taxpayer by nonexistent laws.

For a long time, Apple has always supported international taxation towards a simple and clear reform goal. We believe that these changes should be determined through appropriate legislative procedures. Various proposals should be discussed between the leaders and citizens of the affected countries. Moreover, any new law should look forward instead of turning old books.

We have made a commitment to Ireland and we plan to continue investing there. We will continue to grow and serve our customers with consistent passion and dedication. We firmly believe that the facts and the current legal principles established by the EU will eventually win.