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How about you provide the evidence? If US makes it defacto illegal to operate internationally as a US-based company, the US will lose its economic moat within a
by __blockcipher__ 9y ago
How about you provide the evidence? If US makes it defacto illegal to operate internationally as a US-based company, the US will lose its economic moat within a matter of decades [citation needed, I know]
I’m not a tax expert but IME the people who are blaming Apple don’t know what they’re talking about. Only the US has such an insane attitude towards international profits.
And remember that there’s no loophole to close, unless the “loophole” is deciding what to do with your capital. Who is the US to tell Apple that its foreign subsidiaries must return their foreign-made profits back to the US?
Also remember that with our current laws, repatriating the money before a tax holiday is arguably a violation of Apple’s fiduciary duty to its shareholders.
- anigbrowl 9y agoThe person making the claim has the burden of proof. Maybe repeating a string of specious arguments that have already been debunked or refuted elsewhere in the thread isn't the best approach for your brand-new HN account.
- __blockcipher__ 9y agoDebunked/refuted where? I admit I haven't provided much in the way of evidence. However we're talking about a complicated tax situation so it's hard to stick to the concrete. Do you agree that the only way to "close the loophole" is to force companies to repatriate their earnings? I don't see another way to address it. Right now the issue is that iff Apple repatriates its money, it must pay taxes. So Apple has been fulfilling their fiduciary obligations by opting not to repatriate (which would destroy 30%+ of the value, I don't know the actual number but I believe I am being conservative), instead choosing to take on cheap debt domestically to fund share repurchases. Thus I don't see a "solution" to the "loophole" (obviously I don't believe it's a loophole because it's the law) that doesn't involve forced repatriation. If there's something wrong with what I've said or something I haven't considered, I'm all ears.
- Frondo 9y agoNo one is saying the US would make it illegal to operate an international company. They're looking for ways to close some of these loopholes that are keeping a ton of tax money out of the coffers belonging to We the People. Please don't conflate "closing tax loopholes" with "making it illegal to operate internationally".
- __blockcipher__ 9y agoPlease define the specific tax loophole. The "loophole" as far as I can tell is that a company can choose not to repatriate their earnings, which is completely legal.
- Frondo 9y agoYou were saying "make it de facto illegal to operate a multinational" and that is not on the table and has never been anywhere close to it. Are you walking that back, and want to talk about loopholes now?
- __blockcipher__ 9y agoI consider forced repatriation to be a no-go. Others probably disagree with me, maybe even Tim Cook himself. IMO if you force companies to do something like that with their capital, then they won't incorporate in the US. I do want to talk about loopholes. How do we close the "repatriation loophole"?