EU Court Sides with Amazon... Avoids 340 Billion Won Tax Bomb

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] The General Court of the European Union (EU) ruled on the 12th (local time) to cancel the EU Commission's order for Amazon to pay 250 million euros (approximately 341.2 billion KRW) in taxes, CNBC reported.

Previously, in 2017, the EU Commission regarded the tax benefits provided by Luxembourg to Amazon as "illegal state aid" and ordered Amazon to pay about 250 million euros in taxes to Luxembourg.

In response, Luxembourg and Amazon filed an objection with the EU General Court.

The EU General Court stated, "Luxembourg did not grant selective advantages to Amazon," and "the EU Commission failed to prove that Amazon received an excessive reduction in tax burden," explaining the reason for the ruling.

This ruling is interpreted as a blow to the EU Commission's attempt to create a fair competitive environment by preventing multinational corporations from receiving low tax benefits within the 27 EU member states.

Last year, the EU General Court also annulled the EU Commission's order for the US company Apple to pay 13 billion euros in back taxes.

The EU Commission can appeal the General Court's ruling to the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ), the highest court in the EU.

Amazon welcomed the ruling, stating, "This decision aligns with our long-standing position that we comply with all laws and have not received any special treatment."

Margrethe Vestager, EU Commissioner for Competition, said about the decision, "We will carefully review it and consider possible future actions."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.