French raid Google in latest probe into tech’s tax tactics
technology leader as a manipulative scofflaw. tech companies as they amass huge amounts of cash while reducing their tax bills through complex maneuvers that shield their profits.
As it has consistently done when confronted about its tax strategy, Google issued a statement Tuesday maintaining that it complies with all laws. technology sector had stockpiled $777 billion in cash, adidas stan smith accounting for nearly half of the $1.68 trillion held by non financial companies in the country, according to a study by Moody .
Just five tech companies Apple, Alphabet, Microsoft Corp., Cisco Systems Inc. and Oracle Corp. accounted for adidas philippines sale 2015 $504 billion of that total. lawmakers who want the money brought back to home so it can be taxed and help reduce the country deficit.
It easier for tech companies to legally lower their tax bills than manufacturers because their businesses revolve around patents, algorithms and other intellectual property that easier to move around than a plant, said , a accounting professor issues.
a company is making shoes, adidas superstar it pretty easy to tell where those shoes are being made, Gill said. not the case with intellectual property. It doesn really matter where a contract or algorithm sits. Tax laws have failed to adapt to this kind of environment. investigation is focused on an Ireland subsidiary that enables Google to do business with customers across the European continent while minimizing its taxes a technique known as profit shifting. European regulators increasingly are pressing companies to pay taxes in the jurisdictions in which they do business.
The mounting pressure prompted Google to agree to pay roughly $140 million in British back taxes earlier this year and make changes in how it calculates its United Kingdom tax bill.
Apple reached a similar settlement in Italy late last year, agreeing to pay about $350 million to resolve a dispute in that country.
The French government hasn disclosed how much it believes Google might owe in back taxes, but it made an elaborate show of force in Tuesday raid.
An anticorruption unit and 25 information technology experts descended on Google Paris office, according to France financial prosecutor office. French daily Le Parisien, which first reported the news, said the raid took place at dawn and involved about 100 investigators.
The investigation, which began in June, is focused on tax fraud and organized money laundering, France financial prosecutor office said in its statement.
With all signs indicating that more cash will be pouring into the technology industry, the sector seems likely to remain in the crosshairs of financially strapped governments seeking more tax revenue.