&gt; Belgium already paid for it, in the form of the tax aid they gave the companies.<p>I think we must clarify things and what &quot;it&quot; is<p>(1) Giving tax break is what Belgium wanted to do. Belgium offered aid, companies took it.<p>(2) The fact that said tax breaks (or aid) were illegal is the violation of the law that someone is supposed to pay for.<p>Belgium paid for (1), of course, that was it&#x27;s intention. But it does _not_ pay for (2): it actually gets it&#x27;s money back because of (2), if I understand correctly. Or this money goes back directly to EU, this is not important; anyway, Belgium is not losing money because of (2), companies are.<p>So, companies are paying for performing action that was completely legal in the law of the country they were operating in. Companies are paying for Belgium lawmaker&#x27;s mistake.