Margrethe Vestager, the EU’s competition boss, is poised to open a formal probe into the tax affairs of IKEA, the world’s largest furniture retailer, according to people familiar with the investigation. [...]
Commission investigators have been looking at royalties paid by a Dutch entity to a Luxembourg subsidiary holding intellectual property during the period between 2006 and 2010. They have also been examining the acquisition of that intellectual property by a Dutch IKEA entity, financed by an internal group loan from Lichtenstein, according to a person with knowledge of the inquiry.
In February 2016, Green MEPs published a report that found IKEA companies had avoided €1 billion in taxes across Europe over the prior six years. IKEA did so, the report claimed, through an aggressive franchising structure, the payment of business charges to Lichtenstein and a sweetheart tax ruling in the Netherlands. [...]
IKEA, which turned over some €35 billion in 2016, would be a prominent European scalp for Vestager, who has been dogged by accusations she is “disproportionately” targeting U.S. companies.
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