Apple’s Japan unit is being charged 13 billion yen (US$98 million) in additional taxes for bulk sales of iPhones and other Apple devices to foreign tourists that were incorrectly exempted from the country’s consumption tax, Nikkei Asia reported Tuesday.
Tomoshizu Kawase and Konori Fujita for Nikkei Asia:
Bulk purchases of iPhones by foreign shoppers were discovered at some Apple stores, a source said. At least one transaction involved an individual buying hundreds of handsets at once, suggesting that the store missed taxing a possible reseller.
Japan’s tax-free shopping allows visitors staying for less than six months to buy items such as souvenirs or everyday goods without paying the 10% consumption tax, but this exemption does not apply to purchases for resale purposes.
Apple Japan is believed to have filed an amended tax return. The company also voluntarily stopped offering tax-free shopping in June…
The unusually large back tax charge underscores a glaring loophole in Japan’s unique tax-free shopping rules.
Tax-exempt purchases of consumables such as cosmetics or pharmaceuticals are limited to 500,000 yen, but no cap exists for general goods like home electronics.
MacDailyNews Take: Seems like a loophole that ought to be closed if, for nothing else, the sake of consistency.
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