E-commerce giant Amazon has defeated an appeal by the US Internal Revenue Service in what the online retailer has called a US$1.5 billion dispute over its tax treatment of transactions with a Luxembourg subsidiary.
A US Court of Appeals upheld a 2017 ruling by the US Tax Court related to intangible assets that Amazon transferred in 2005 and 2006 to the unit, Amazon Europe Holding Technologies.
Intangible assets include items such as customer lists, intellectual property and software. The appeals court rejected a broader definition sought by the IRS that would have boosted Amazon’s tax bill.
