No limit to fines in tax loophole probe, EU rules

The European Union will not limit how much it seeks to claw back from companies including Apple and Amazon that are ensnared in tax probes if controversial deals with national governments are overturned.

The financial health of firms under investigation would not warrant special treatment to avoid harming the economy — even if recovery amounts were in the billions of euros, said Gert-Jan Koopman, the European Commission’s deputy director-general for state aid.

“The odds and stakes for the companies concerned are massive,” Koopman said in an interview in Brussels.