Apple Store, North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Did Apple Avoid Billions of Dollars in Taxes?

Apple has been at the forefront of computer technology for years now, a worldwide brand that is based right in the United States. However, all of this success has not been achieved without a few dealings that could be outside of the parameters of the law. On May 21st, 2013, Apple was accused of using subsidiary companies in Ireland to store away billions of dollars, refusing to pay taxes on this money to either government.

The accusations do not say that Apple directly broke the law, but that they used loopholes to make sure they did not have to pay around $9 billion in US taxes. They did so by shifting the money offshore, sending it to sister companies in Ireland, something that is not hard to do for an international company that has contacts all across the globe. However, even though the loopholes allowed them to skip out on taxes, experts say that certain sections of the tax code clearly state that the money Apple moved overseas should still be subject to US tax law, despite the fact that the money itself is outside of the country.

Both Apple and the Irish government have denied that any evasion occurred, though accusations claim that Ireland often offers low taxes to international companies as a way to boost its own economy. Apple is also still going to have to pay roughly $7 billion for the 2013 tax season; emphasis on closing loopholes in the tax code could cause this number to swell.

Apple CEO Tim Cook Testifies About Avoiding Taxes