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FACEBOOK’S MAIN IRISH arm paid €3.4 million in tax to the Exchequer last year on sales of €4.8 billion booked through its local operations.
Accounts recently filed for Facebook Ireland Limited showed a 64% rise in turnover recorded for its subsidiary compared to the figures for 2013. The company paid €2.3 million in corporate taxes that year.
“This increase was attributable to growth in online advertising revenue from third-party customers,” the documents said.
The company also recorded the cost of delivering its annual sales as only €89.9 million, giving it a gross profit for 2014 of €4.7 billion.
However the company also booked miscellaneous “administrative expenses” which sliced the company’s pre-tax net profits to only €12.8 million.
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The deductions included royalties paid “for use of the Facebook platform” to its direct parent, Facebook Ireland Holdings, another Irish-registered firm.
That company’s unlimited share structure means it doesn’t need to file annual accounts disclosing its revenue, profits or corporate taxes paid.
Facebook Ireland Limited’s expenses also included unspecified royalties paid to its parent companies for data-hosting services and fees for “management-related services”.
Facebook is among a string of global firms accused of using complex profit-shifting structures, often involving a network of loans and payments to its own companies, to reduce its bills by siphoning income into low-tax jurisdictions.
In the UK, for example, it paid £4,327 (€5,975 at today’s rates) in corporate tax for 2014. However the company insists it adheres to all tax laws in the countries in which it operates.
The global pie
The average headcount for 2014, according to Facebook Ireland Limited’s accounts, was 478 for 2014, a 13% increase on its workforce in 2013.
Facebook says it employs about 1,000 people in its Dublin office, which serves as the company’s international headquarters.
The revenues recorded at the Irish company formed part of global income for Facebook worth $12.5 billion (€11.5 billion today) in 2014.
Net income, or after-tax profit, was $2.9 billion worldwide, while the company put aside nearly $2 billion – or 16% of its overall revenue – for corporate taxes.
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#COYGIG!! Fantastic evening for soccer in Ireland.
@Sean O’Dhubhghaill: Really great win.
@Sean O’Dhubhghaill: you are right, amazing performance. You kind of wonder why they couldnt pull it out for the other games though. Still it will give them great confidence going to the playoffs.
@Sean O’Dhubhghaill: its a shame you’re not very consistent AND you think FG have overseen some massive recovery in Ireland that they havent
@S Suilleabhain: What has that got to do with his COYGIG comment and this article? Was a comment of his deleted from this page?
@Setanta O’Toole: For the same reason probably that the Ireland’s men’s team would be lucky to win any match if they were in the same group as the 2nd, 3rd and 6th raned teams in the world i.e. France, Belguim and Portugal.
@Injustice Cop: he was odious to me & nasty and is routinely. I’ll say what I like and dont regard him as anything like a decent Irishman
strange username you have there, ironic.
Well done indeed ladies .
Brilliant result. Really attacked today and that goal v England gave them the emputis to push on in this game. Super venue also.
Brilliant! Well done everyone – delighted for you all
Great result for Mna na hEireann
To be fair. This was a great win against a top women’s team. Maybe now they realise that they are better then they think and give them a boost for the next time. Well done ladies.
Well done, great to see them finally getting a well-deserved win. Hope sign of things to come for them.
@ S Suilleabhain: You are pathetic. On an article concerning a great victory for our Women’s National Team you somehow have to bring completely unrelated politics into. How does it feel to have failed so miserable in life? There ar3 people all around you, from every part of the country have successfully made a decent life for themselves under the same circumstances you had to live under. You are a bitter failure. The soo wrong you take responsibility for your life the sooner things will improve for you. As long as you bitterly whinge and moan you will always be a miserable failure. Wise up.
Coolaboola
Great performance. I’m having a piece of humble pie for lunch!
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