Economics
Pinning Down Apple’s Alleged 0.005% Tax Rate Is Nearly Impossible
- EU’s disputed calculation is based on data that’s not public
- Three-year-old U.S. Senate investigation provides clue
Is Apple’s Effective Tax Rate in Ireland Justified?
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The European Commission’s finding that Ireland must collect as much as an attention-getting 13 billion euros ($14.5 billion) in back taxes from Apple Inc. contained a second stunning number: 0.005 percent.
In a news release, the commission said that figure represented the effective corporate tax rate Apple paid on its European profits in 2014. At that rate, someone who earned $1 million would pay $50 in tax.