The European Commission has appealed to the European Court of Justice to make Apple pay a record 13 billion euros in Irish back taxes. The case has far-reaching implications for corporate tax bills and will determine whether member states may continue to grant multinationals substantial tax breaks in return for jobs and investments.
Apple has refuted the Commission’s arguments, saying it has paid its fair share of taxes in the appropriate country. The EU competition enforcer has suffered court losses in recent months to challenges by Fiat Chrysler, Amazon and Starbucks, although it had a legal victory when the CJEU in September took its side in a Belgian tax break case against a group of multinationals.
A ruling by the Court of Justice is expected in the coming months and would be the final word. The outcome of this case will have a major impact on the taxation of multinationals in the European Union.