Despite repeated warnings about the potential once-off nature of corporation tax receipts and the concentration risk of having so few firms paying the bulk of the money, Ireland continues to hit the business tax jackpot.
We’ve known for some time that 10 large US multinationals account for over 50 per cent of corporation tax receipts . The Irish Fiscal Advisory Council estimates that three of them account for a third of the total. Based on company filings and well-placed industry sources, we’ve attempted to identify these 10 companies.
Microsoft Ireland Operations Ltd’s parent is another Irish registered business, Microsoft Ireland Research UC. The latter appears to be the group’s IP holding company in that it licenses the rights of assets owned and developed by Microsoft to other group companies in return for royalty payments. Pfizer was one of the first pharmaceutical companies to locate in the Republic and has invested over €9 billion in its Irish operations since first locating here in 1969. The company’s coronavirus vaccine Comirnaty generated almost $38 billion in revenue for the company in 2022.The most recent accounts filed for the social media giant’s main Irish subsidiary, Meta Platforms Ireland Limited, said it generated revenues of €58.05 billion for 2022.
Janssen Sciences Ireland’s accounts show the company holds €18 billion worth of IP here, of which €6 billion is impaired or written off against taxes. When the capital allowances of these blockbuster companies run out, they will presumably be liable to pay more tax in this jurisdiction, suggesting Ireland’s corporate tax take could climb further in the coming decade.