The Exchequer collected a record amount of corporation tax last year. The US software giant was the largest contributor (that we know of), according to new analysis of 13 related companies incorporated and domiciled by the group in Ireland.
As The Currency revealed that several multinationals continue to use the double Irish tax structure via Malta, domestic retailers EuroGiant and Anthony Nicholas demonstrated that success is achievable without such tactics – they just focused on strengthening their balance sheet.
Over the past eight years, the US and Irish governments have tried and failed to close tax loopholes on three occasions. Why is this, and can the collective approach under the new OECD deal turn the tide?
For five years, a charity has warned of the risk that multinationals may combine Ireland and Malta to minimise their tax bills aggressively. Now that its concerns have been borne out, Christian Aid explains why it matters.
Computer chips, video games, aircraft leases: As long as a portion of Irish income can be attributed to intangible assets, multinationals have found creative ways of having it taxed at around 5% in the Mediterranean island.
Perigord, which designs artwork for the life sciences sector, sold a majority stake to Indian giant Tech Mahindra last year for €21 million. It has brought fire power and even more ambition to the business, says Perigord CEO Alan Leamy.
Successive rule changes purported to outlaw the double Irish and single malt tax structures but they left a gap wide open. Here is how Abbott stepped into it to minimise the tax due on profits from Covid-19 and other medical tests.
Months before Covid-19, Abbott Laboratories completed the reorganisation of a rapid diagnostics unit across Ireland and Malta. When this business ballooned, profits trickled through the supposedly closed double Irish loophole.
Like so many technology multinationals, Airbnb ran intellectual property through US and Irish loopholes to minimise its tax bills over the past decade. After failing to convince the IRS its figures were right, the firm is prepared to go to court.
When the Double Irish was shuttered, it was replaced with the Green Jersey and the utilisation of intercompany debt structures. It fits a familiar pattern: when one tax loophole closes, another one is usually prised open.
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