Well, folks, it looks like Apple’s 10-year dance with the European Union over taxes in Ireland has hit a crescendo, and the tune isn’t exactly music to their ears. After a decade of court battles, legal briefs, and headline drama, Europe’s top court, the European Court of Justice (ECJ), finally slammed the gavel. The ruling? Apple needs to cough up a jaw-dropping €13 billion in back taxes to Ireland. The drama began back in 2016, when the European Commission first demanded that Apple hand over the billions, accusing them of benefiting from “illegal” tax breaks. But like any good saga, this fight wasn’t going down without a sequel.
On the same day that Apple showed off shiny new iPhones, Apple Watches, and AirPods – clearly hoping to steal the spotlight – the ECJ decision dimmed the glitz a bit. As Apple unveiled their latest gadgets, investors weren’t entirely charmed, with Apple shares dipping around 1%. But the tech giant tried to keep its cool, pointing out that this case has “never been about how much tax we pay, but which government we are required to pay it to.” Apple, of course, insists they’ve always paid their taxes, just perhaps not where the European Commission thought they should. Now, a tidy $10 billion charge will show up in Apple’s books for their fourth fiscal quarter.
Meanwhile, Ireland—caught in the middle of this transatlantic tax tug-of-war—essentially shrugged it off, calling the whole affair “historically relevant” but not exactly front-page news. The government made it clear that it’s not in the business of handing out sweet tax deals to corporations, but with the court’s ruling, the process of transferring that enormous pile of cash out of an escrow fund and into Irish coffers will now begin. It’s been a long road, but Ireland is getting paid.
The ECJ ruling is a reminder that the EU isn’t ready to let U.S. tech giants off the hook just yet. Margrethe Vestager, the EU’s soon-to-be-outgoing competition czar, made Apple’s tax case her pet project, and this ruling proves she’s left her mark. But don’t think the EU is done with Apple—far from it. From antitrust fines to the Digital Markets Act forcing Apple and its rivals to play by a new set of rules, the battle between the European Union and Big Tech is far from over. Keep your popcorn handy.
(Source: Fortune | BBC | France 24)
