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McDonald's, Starbucks under investigation for tax evasion in EU

McDonald’s is joining Starbucks in an investigation of the companies' tax affairs in Europe by European Union officials.

April 9, 2015

McDonald’s is joining Starbucks in an investigation of the companies' tax affairs in Europe by European Union officials, The Guardian reported. The scrutiny comes after tax rulings in Luxembourg and accusations from labor unions that McDonald's is failing to pay its dues.

Luxembourg is to provide EU antitrust regulators information on its tax policies. Officials believe 'unfairly low taxation' rates may have impaired competition, the article said. The investigation will put a spotlight on the financial activities of the company. 

US and Europe unions and British-based charity War on Want advocated for an investigation by the European Commission after finding issues with approximately 1B euros ($1.07B) of taxes between 2009 and 2013.

McDonald's joins four other investigations by the commission’s competition authority, including Apple, Amazon, Fiat and Starbucks, to determine whether the companies struck deals with three national taxation authorities in the EU for illegal state aid, the Guardian said.