Tax Practices

Used Luxembourg as its European tax base since 2003, routing EU profits through entities that legally avoided corporate tax — making €44B in European sales in 2020 while reporting a €1.2B loss in Luxembourg and paying zero corporate tax. Won the EU state aid case in December 2023 (ECJ ruled EU failed to prove illegal advantage). Named "worst" tax avoider among major corporations in the Fair Tax Foundation's 2025 report.

EU's top court ruled in September 2024 that Apple owed Ireland €13 billion in back taxes, confirming Apple's "Double Irish" structure let its Irish subsidiaries pay as little as 0.005% tax on profits routed through entities with no tax residency anywhere. Apple paid the €13B+ into escrow in 2018 during appeals; Ireland withdrew the funds from escrow in July 2025. The case is the largest corporate tax recovery in EU history.