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Ireland starts collecting back tax from Apple

by on05 December 2017


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The Fruity Cargo Cult is starting to pay back tax in Ireland, despite the fact it has denied doing anything illegal.

Last year, the European Commission ruled that Apple had taken part in an illegal deal with the Irish government and that the company owed around $14.5 billion in back taxes.

The Irish government was reluctant to collect the cash - after all that would mean hacking off Apple and that could mean the Fruity Cargo Cult taking its industry elsewhere and finding another tax dodge instead.

So the Commission referred the Irish government to the European Court of Justice in October due to Ireland's non-compliance with the 2016 ruling.

Both Apple and Ireland are continuing to fight the ruling - Ireland has said that the European Union overstepped its authority and got some of the country's laws wrong while Apple has maintained that the amount it's being told to repay was miscalculated.

Both are continuing to appeal the decision and the money will sit in an escrow fund while they do so.

Ireland has said that negotiating the terms of that fund is what has held up its collection of the money, but the European Commission said that the action it has taken against Ireland for failing to follow the 2016 ruling will proceed until the money is collected in full.

Paschal Donohoe, Ireland's finance minister, said that Apple is expected to begin funnelling money into the fund during the first quarter of 2018.

Last modified on 05 December 2017
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