22/05 - Apple's boss tries to explain why billions of ... - Economy Morning

“Think different” is the slogan that sounds obviously fake ears of senators … This is now the U.S. Senate as a parliamentary commission, which would put his nose in the accounts U.S. multinationals that pay so little in taxes despite record profits. Starting with Apple, suspected of having established “broad strategies” to avoid taxes. Its CEO, Tim Cook, has been interviewed yesterday to explain how such a group could garner a whopping $ 30 billion in one of its subsidiaries abroad … without paying taxes in the United States

The head of the Apple brand explained that “Apple uses no tax tricks “ and ” has no bank account in the Cayman Islands “ . Enough to convince the Commission, scalded the idea that billions can escape the IRS, and therefore the Americans themselves? Not yet.

“Apple is probably the biggest contributor of corporation tax in the United States, with nearly $ 6 billion paid Treasury for 2012 “ , or 2.5% of the total collection, explained the group prior to the hearing in a document. It also pays 30% tax on income reported in the United States, not far from the 35% of the official rate of corporation tax. Either! But the real problem, and Apple knows it, it is the huge sums of money earned abroad, including the United States does not see color In total Apple holds a hundred billion in foreign accounts and have avoided paying $ 74 bil lion in tax to the IRS between 2009 and 2012.

In fact, system set up by the giant technology is simple, and perfectly legal: he rushes into the “gaps” in the existing U.S. and foreign courts. For example, group has its European headquarters in Ireland while maintaining the leadership in California. Why? Because Ireland does not pay taxes to run businesses out of the country, and the United States do not pay corporate taxes are not installed on their territory. In short, many subsidiaries Apple have tax residence … anywhere

And so a holding called Apple Operations International has not made tax return for five years, while its revenue totaled $ 30 billion between 2009 and 2012 .

Still, as pointed out by the Republican Senator and former presidential candidate John McCain election, reform comprehensively U.S. and international tax law .. . Not easy

Apple part, to Amazon, Google, Microsoft or even Starbuck’s side, U.S. multinationals increasingly criticized for their tax planning strategies, the time when states need more than ever to get money in their coffers.

Recently, the OECD, which brings together some thirty developed countries, has cracked a report on tax evasion by multinational companies. According to the institution, it poses serious problems. Thus the tax avoidance strategy in the extreme by some successful companies that hire the best experts to domicile some of their activities in tax havens, ” poses real risks to revenue, sovereignty and tax fairness “d u world.