Paradise Papers show Apple moved $252bn to offshore Jersey fund
US tech giant Apple moved a huge chunk of its untaxed offshore cash to the Channel Island of Jersey following a crackdown on its controversial tax practices in Ireland.
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The information was released as part of the Paradise Papers leak, which shows the extent to which several major companies and wealthy individuals are able to use tax havens to avoid paying the correct amount of tax.
Documents show that Apple moved $252bn to a fund in Jersey in 2013 as authorities looked at how its subsidiaries in Ireland processed their taxes.
Last year, the European Commission ordered the iPhone maker to repay €13bn in unpaid taxes to the Irish government, who have so far rejected the idea that it gave the company massive tax breaks. The Commission said Apple’s de facto tax rate for one financial year in Ireland had been as low as 0.005%, significantly below the country’s 12.5% corporation tax level and even further away from the current US level of 35%.
In a statement in response to the leak, Apple said it pays the correct amount of tax in every country it operates in and reiterated it was the largest taxpayer in the world.
"Apple believes every company has a responsibility to pay its taxes, and as the largest taxpayer in the world, Apple pays every dollar it owes in every country around the world," the company said.
"As the largest taxpayer in the world, Apple pays every dollar it owes in every country around the world" Apple
"We believe every company has a responsibility to pay the taxes they owe and we’re proud of the economic contributions we make to the countries and communities where we do business."
More revelations are expected to arrive this week, with several global news organisations such as The New York Times and the BBC collaborating on the release of the information.
Former US presidential candidate and senator Bernie Sanders lambasted the practice of multinational corporations avoiding the payment of taxes. He called on Congress to investigate the Papers before it moves forward with its major tax overhaul in the US.
"The major issue of our time is the rapid movement toward international oligarchy in which a handful of billionaires own and control a significant part of the global economy," Sanders said
"It must fully investigate the Paradise Papers to make sure that the billionaire class can no longer stash their cash in the Cayman Islands, Bermuda and other offshore tax havens."