They pay 12.5% tax on the profits generated by the 6000 employees in Ireland, and 0% tax on the profits generated by employees outside of Ireland. They should, under EU law, be taxed in the country the profits are generated in, but under US law, where they claim the real money is made, the tax law says that tax should be paid in the country the company is registered in, ie Ireland. The reason they pay almost no tax is because they argue that their Irish employees generate almost no profit for the company, and the vast profits generated by the non-Irish employees don't get taxed anywhere.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
