On 30 August 2016, Ireland was ordered by the EC to recover up to €13 billion from Apple on the basis that tax arrangements implemented between Apple and Ireland, originally in 1991, amounted to the provision of unlawful tax state aid in contravention of EU law. The decision clearly has very major ramifications for all multinationals in Europe – and particularly for US multinationals – which are operating under tax arrangements entered into historically with Member States and brings into much sharper focus the need for all multinationals to assess their existing tax arrangements to determine whether these give rise to adverse state aid consequences and how profits may have been allocated between different group entities.

This case builds on similar decisions by the EC last year when it concluded that the Netherlands and Luxembourg had provided unlawful tax state aid to Starbucks and Fiat respectively pursuant to tax agreements previously entered into with them.