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Apple is set to face a series of allegations from the European Commision alleging that Ireland provided illegal ‘state aid’ to the firm, Apple Insider reports.
The company has operated from a subsidiary located in Cork since 1980, which has led to Apple’s chief financial officer Luca Maestri denying that Ireland ever provided state aid.
In a report from the Financial Times Maestri said: ”There’s never been any special deal, there’s never been anything that would be construed as state aid."
However, Apple sought a meeting with the Irish authorities after a change in the law.
This change occurred in 1991, and the company reached a new agreement on taxation that continued until 2007.
Prior to 1991, the company’s Ireland subsidiary operated tax-free. However, as Apple’s overseas sales began to grow due to products such as the iPhone, Ireland ‘approached Apple to revise its tax arrangements to reflect the growth and new functions.’
Maestri said in the report that Apple was trying to understand the right amount of tax the company should pay in to Ireland.
Maestri added: "If countries change the tax laws, we will abide by the new laws and we will pay taxes according to those laws.
"We know that we didn’t do anything that was against the law and we are very confident, that through the investigation, it will be shown that there was no selective treatment in our favor at any point in time.
“We simply followed the laws in the country over the 35 years that we have been in Ireland."
