A bill from Brussels: Apple and tax

A bill from Brussels: Apple and tax
The European Commission is about to take a bite out of Apple. The EU’s executive is today expected to rule that the technology giant’s tax arrangements with Ireland amounted to preferential treatment (with tax rates in the low single digits), thereby breaching the bloc’s state-aid rules. The commission will suggest a figure or a range that Apple owes Dublin—which is likely to exceed $1 billion—leaving the precise calculation to the Irish government. But the government, fearing other investors would be put off, doesn’t want to collect the money; it will appeal, as will Apple, ensuring the case drags on for years. The ruling will stoke transatlantic tensions: America recently lambasted the commission for trying to turn itself into a “supranational tax authority” and declared the theories underpinning the anticipated ruling flawed. Washington accuses Eurocrats of undermining OECD-led efforts to form international consensus on how to tackle corporate tax shenanigans. Europe’s efforts to curb tax avoidance may instead start a global tax war.