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Vishu Bheda
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Medial • 3m
This is the weirdest tax case in history... Apple found a way to pay 0.005% tax while others paid 12.5%. The EU demanded $13 billion in revenge. But Ireland fought AGAINST receiving $13 billion in tax money. This is the bizarre story that exposed Big Tech's biggest secret: Imagine running a company so big it’s worth trillions. Now, imagine getting a €13 billion tax bill from the EU. That’s exactly what happened to Apple in 2016. The EU found that Apple paid only 0.005% in taxes in Ireland in 2014. To put it simply, for every $10,000 Apple earned, they paid just 50 cents in tax. How did this happen? Apple set up two Irish companies, ASI and AOE, to handle its profits from Europe. These companies weren’t fully taxed anywhere because they didn’t count as tax residents in any country. This allowed Apple to save billions, but the EU said it gave Apple an unfair advantage over other businesses. The EU said this was unfair and called it “illegal state aid.” But here’s where it gets surprising: both Apple and Ireland fought back. Why did Ireland defend Apple? Because Ireland’s low taxes had attracted tech giants, creating thousands of jobs and boosting its economy. If they took Apple’s €13 billion, they feared other companies might leave. Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, didn’t hold back. He called the EU’s decision “political nonsense” and said Apple had already paid $20 billion in U.S. taxes. This legal battle lasted years and wasn’t just about Apple. It showed how big companies use loopholes to pay less tax and started a global push for fairer rules. In the end, this case wasn’t just about taxes. It changed how the world thinks about business, fairness, and global tax systems.
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