爱尔兰将被迫封堵企业税收漏洞
Ireland is to shut its so-called “double Irish” corporate tax loophole from the beginning of next year, bowing to intense pressure to close one of the most controversial measures in international tax planning.
爱尔兰将封堵被称为“双层爱尔兰”(double Irish)的企业税收漏洞，屈服于要求该国取缔最具争议的国际税务规划手段之一的强大压力。
Beneficiaries include Google, Facebook and big pharmaceutical companies. In the past 20 years they have established significant tax-planning operations in Dublin, in addition to large operational, research and development and manufacturing divisions.
这一税收安排的受益者包括谷歌(Google)、Facebook和一些大型制药企业。在过去20年里，这些企业不仅在都柏林设立了大规模的运营、研发和制造分公司，也在当地建立了可观的税务规划部门。Luring US investment to Ireland helped create its booming economy before the financial crisis. For years, Dublin resisted intense pressure from its EU partners over what they regarded as unfair tax competition.
将美国投资吸引至爱尔兰，使该国在金融危机前享受了经济繁荣。多年来，爱尔兰一直抵制欧盟(EU)其它成员国的巨大压力，这些成员国将这种税收安排视为不公平的税收竞争手段。
Dublin’s move is a pre-emptive step ahead of an international campaign to clamp down on corporate tax avoidance. It removes a loophole that was starting to discredit the country’s overall corporate tax rate of 12.5 per cent.
爱尔兰政府此举抢在一场打击企业避税的国际行动之前。这个漏洞已经开始使人们质疑该国12.5%的整体企业税率。Michael Noonan, finance minister, said the double Irish would not be available for companies setting up in Ireland from January. Groups using the existing structure have until 2020 to phase it out or make other arrangements.
爱尔兰财政部长迈克尔•努南(Michael Noonan)表示，从明年1月起，在爱尔兰设立的公司将不能采取双层爱尔兰做法。利用现有架构的企业必须以2020年为限，分阶段退出，或者作出其他安排。One such arrangement will be a new “knowledge development box” similar to the “patent box” adopted by the UK recently but already being probed by Brussels. While the details are still being worked out, it is understood that the box will carry a tax rate of 2.5 per cent – higher than in the UK. Companies will still be able to pool their intellectual property income behind a tax shelter.
其中一种安排将是一种新的“知识发展盒”(knowledge development box)，类似于英国不久前出台的“专利盒”(patent box)，后者已受到欧盟调查。尽管细节尚未敲定，但人们的理解是，知识发展盒将实行2.5%的税率，高于英国。企业仍将能够将其知识产权收入置于一种避税工具的保护之下。The double Irish allows companies to avoid tax on billions of dollars of royalty income by exploiting differences between Irish and US tax laws.
双层爱尔兰做法使企业得以利用爱尔兰与美国之间的税法差异，避免为巨额特许权使用费收入纳税。The European Commission had threatened a full-scale investigation of the structure unless the government acted to shut it down. The Commission is already probing alleged sweetheart tax deals between Ireland and Apple.
欧盟委员会(European Commission)此前威胁，如果爱尔兰政府不取缔双层爱尔兰结构，就将对其展开全面调查。欧盟委员会已开始调查爱尔兰与苹果(Apple)之间据称暗中达成的税收交易。
