Apple has agreed to pay €318 million to Italy’s tax office to end a tax investigation there.
The sum is what the authorities had demanded, according to a tax office official. But it is well below the €880 million the company had reportedly been accused of hiding.
Apple had been accused of evading tax from 2008 to 2013 by booking some of its sales in Italy through its Irish subsidiary, as reported in the Italian press.
Apple is one of many multinationals which chose Ireland to base their international operations. Corporation tax there is among the lowest in the world.
Some governments as well as the EU have begun to look into the corporate tax arrangements of multinational companies, including Google, Starbucks and Amazon.
A deal between Apple and the Irish government is currently being investigated by the EU. A decision is expected next year.
This year, the EU ordered Luxembourg and the Netherlands to recoup millions in unclaimed tax payments from Fiat and Starbucks.
"Apple pays every dollar and euro it owes in taxes and we are continuously audited by governments around the world," the company said in a statement in November.
"The Italian tax authorities already audited Apple Italy in 2007, 2008 and 2009 and confirmed that we were in full compliance with the OECD documentation and transparency requirements. We are confident the current review will reach the same conclusion."
