Dublin: Technology giant Apple has lost a long-running legal battle with the European Union. According to court orders, the company will pay $14.4 billion to Ireland in back taxes.
In 2016, the European Commission’s competition chief, Margaret Vestiger, accused Ireland of giving Apple illegal tax breaks that were unfairly driving investment away from other countries.
Both Apple and Ireland (whose low tax rate has forced major technology companies to set up their European headquarters there) have challenged the EU’s decision.
However, the European Court of Justice has sided with Chief Margaret, agreeing that Apple has been unfairly advantaged by flaws in Ireland’s tax regime and now owes the country $14.4 billion. have to pay
Part of Ireland’s success in luring all the big technology companies is its old tech regime, which allowed multinational businesses to cut their overseas partnerships.
