Posted on 05/22/2013 7:25:43 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Tim Cook, Apple’s chief executive, and Peter Oppenheimer, chief financial officer, are expected to testify before the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee today to dispute the findings of a new Senate report on its tax strategies.
A new Senate report alleges that Apple (AAPL) blows through a loophole that capitalizes on the difference between U.S. and Irish rules regarding tax residency to avoid paying corporate income taxes.
The report says the move let Apple shift at least $74 billion away from the Internal Revenue Service between 2009 and 2012. The report also alleges that Apple uses shell operations in Ireland to avoid U.S. taxes.
But Apple hotly disputes that characterization. Apple says its Irish units are not “offshore operations,” but instead run a huge chunk of Apple’s global business, which the Senate report also indicates.
Apple says its international headquarters in Cork, Ireland, employs 4,000 workers. These workers are responsible for selling Apple products to consumers and businesses in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, India, Asia and the Pacific, information that is noted, too, in the Senate report.
The 4,000 workers at Apple’s base in Ireland “are engaged in manufacturing, customer service, sales support, supply chain and risk management operations and finance support services,” Apple’s testimony says.
Apple says 61% of its sales come from overseas, which is why two-thirds of its $144.7 billion in cash and equivalents is parked overseas, cash which supports growth, including things like acquisitions or opening new stores.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxbusiness.com ...
If our tax structure was not so punitive to business Apple would bring this money home and use it to create even more jobs.
so if they build real cheap in China and pay very little if any taxes ,why is their junk so expensive , they must have a 99.999999 % profit
Beat me to it.
RE: I hate Apple (long story) but regarding the taxes they pay...their business tax strategy is either legal or it’s illegal
Rand Paul told his colleagues yesterday ( in opposition to John McCain ) that what Apple is doing is LEGAL. They are simply exploiting America’s tax code to their advantage.
Of course it CAN be made illegal by law later, but it isn’t illegal now.
The question is not legality or illegality ( anything can be made legal or illegal by law — see marijuana laws for instance ).
The question is TAX LAWS STRENGTHEN THE AMERICAN ECONOMY AND MAKE US MORE COMPETITIVE?
I am not fond of Apple, but i am far less fond of the current administration. There is a fiduciary responsibility to pay as little as legally permissible in taxes, and with the federal government out of control that is also a moral responsibility. I applaud Apple for legally avoiding taxes, and I blame Congress for making the tax laws far too complex.
Wow, since when did we have Communist arguments fronted here?
Apple's products are not 'expensive,' because the market they cater to is able to afford them.
Whether they have a 1% profit margin or a 99.99% profit margin is none of anyone else's concern.
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