EU court: Amazon tax deal with Luxembourg was legal

A European Union court has overturned a ruling by the European Commission that a tax deal between the Luxembourg government and Amazon amounted to illegal state support

BRUSSELS -- In the latest setback to European Union efforts to tackle corporate tax avoidance, a court on Wednesday annulled a ruling by the European Commission that a tax deal between the Luxembourg government and Amazon amounted to illegal state support. The European Commission ordered the U.S. online retailer in 2017 to pay around 250 million euros ($300 million) in back taxes to Luxembourg. But judges at the EU's General Court said the European Commission didn't prove “to the requisite legal standard that there was an undue reduction of the tax burden of a European subsidiary of the Amazon group." Amazon said it welcomed the court’s decision, which is “in line with our long-standing position that we followed all applicable laws and that Amazon received no special treatment,” the company said in a statement. “We’re pleased that the Court has made this clear, and we can continue to focus on delivering for our customers across Europe.” The European Commission's decision related to Luxembourg’s tax treatment of two companies in the Amazon group: Amazon EU and Amazon Europe Holding Technologies.