Japanese media are reporting that Apple’s Japanese subsidiary will be hit with an additional 13 billion yen ($681 million) in taxes by Tokyo authorities because the company’s mass sales of iPhones and other Apple devices to foreign tourists were wrongly exempted from consumption tax.
iPhone 14 Pro
Foreign shoppers have been spotted buying iPhones in bulk at some Apple retail stores, with at least one transaction involving a single person buying hundreds of phones at once, without the store collecting tax from at least one suspected reseller, people familiar with the matter said. Japan exempts visitors who stay in the country for less than six months from paying the 10 percent consumption tax on purchases, but the exemption does not apply to purchases made for resale purposes.
Apple Japan, which already suspended tax-free purchases in June and filed a revised tax return, has yet to comment.
Apple CEO Tim Cook visited Japan earlier this month and announced that the company has invested more than $100 billion in its Japanese supply network over the past five years.
