In a highly anticipated decision, the European Union’s second highest court has ruled that a tax deal struck between the U.S. tech giant Apple and Irish tax authorities almost two decades ago did not violate EU state aid rules.
In a decision handed down on Wednesday, the Luxembourg-based EU General Court also quashed the 2016 state aid order that set the years long legal fight between the U.S. tech company and European competition authorities in motion. The decision means that Apple will not have to pay €13.1 billion – with €1.2 billion in interest – in back taxes to the Irish tax authorities, as the Commission ordered it to in 2016.
