Tax contribution 2015

Inditex Group’s tax contribution for 2015 financial year amounted to 2,501 million euros regarding direct taxes. This category includes taxes on profits, contributions to social security systems, taxes on products and services and environmental taxes; which were paid in the countries where the Group carries out its business activities. The average corporate tax rate was 23%.

By geographic area, Inditex paid 40% of its direct tax contribution in Spain (1,011 million euros), 20% in the European Union and 13% in non-EU European countries. America received 16% of the direct taxes paid by the Group in 2015 and Asia and the rest of the world received 11%.

Additionally Inditex contributes with major returns derived from its activities through the collection of taxes paid by third parties, such as Value Added Tax or Personal Income Tax. In 2015, this indirect tax contribution amounted to 2,498 million euros. In terms of the geographic distribution of this indirect tax contribution, 365 million euros were collected in Spain (15% of the total amount), and 1,543 million euros were collected in the remaining EU countries. 211 million euros were collected by the Group for non-EU European countries and 210 million euros in America, representing each figure 8% of the total amount. In Asia and the rest of the world, this contribution amounted to 169 million euros (7% of the total amount).

The abovementioned contributions are the materialization of Group Tax Strategy´s guiding principles which were approved by the Board of Directors in 2015, within which we can highlight the following ones:

• The unwavering commitment of the Group to comply with all of its tax obligations, according to the legislation in force in the different countries where it makes business, through a transparent fiscal model which is based on ethical tax practices and that promotes the economic and social development of these countries with fair tax contribution.
• The establishment of relations with the different tax authorities of the countries where the Group makes business which are based on principles of good faith, collaboration and mutual trust. In this regard the Group tries to avoid tax litigation by giving preference to the interpretative criteria of the tax legislation which are set by such tax authorities.
• The Group does not use opaque business structures putting shell companies located in territories considered as tax havens (according to the list of territories deemed tax havens by Spanish tax legislation). Therefore, the Group operates through companies based in these territories only to the extent that it is strictly necessary to make business activities with stores located in such territories.
• The setting of pricing in all the transactions carried out between Group companies following arm´s length conditions, in accordance with the tax legislation of the countries involved in each operation and the existing international transfer pricing rules accepted by the OECD.

Tax contribution

Direct taxes (in millions of euros)

Direct tax contribution and collected taxes by geographical area (in millions of euros)