To be frank, a 3% tax is too little too late.
It's easier to get it accepted with a small rate. Later on it can be increased.
US launches inquiry into French plan to tax tech giants
71–80 of 95 posts
Re: US launches inquiry into French plan to tax tech giants
#72> Countries including France and the UK have accused firms of routing some profits through low-tax EU member states such as Ireland and Luxembourg. This seems to be the problem. The EU laws have allowed these companies to avoid taxes. Small countries just next to France (Luxembourg) are able to help these companies. But France will not go against these countries and instead try to handle things through taxes. I don't…
The UK accuses firms of routing profits through low-tax EU member states? Did they mention Jersey, Guernsey, Isle of Man + Anguilla, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Gibraltar, Turks and Caicos Islands? Well, I suppose they aren't EU member states, carry on.
Same with France: Monaco. That's why I said they got to get their shit together.
Re: US launches inquiry into French plan to tax tech giants
#73Earlier quoted context omitted.
The UK accuses firms of routing profits through low-tax EU member states? Did they mention Jersey, Guernsey, Isle of Man + Anguilla, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Gibraltar, Turks and Caicos Islands? Well, I suppose they aren't EU member states, carry on.
Same with France: Monaco. That's why I said they got to get their shit together.
Monaco is not part of France.
Re: US launches inquiry into French plan to tax tech giants
#74Earlier quoted context omitted.
Just showing your patriotism does not add much value to this thread. If you want to have a meaningful contribution, you should use facts and logical reasoning.
The OP provided facts. Now is setting a certain threshold discriminatory, no idea. One interesting data point would be the percentage of US tech giants in total compared to those that fall under the proposed tax. If they are overrepresented it might be discriminatory, if not much less so.
How do you tax an industry if said industry is majoritarily composed of US companies without it being flagged as discriminatory ? If we look at it the other way it would mean US companies have a free pass.
Re: US launches inquiry into French plan to tax tech giants
#75US has a trade deficit with France. So potentially there is more to loose for France in case of a trade war: https://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/balance/c4279.html And generally speaking the US has a trade deficit with Europe: https://ustr.gov/countries-regions/europe-middle-east/europe... My understanding of the economic system between the US and the world is that other countries support the US dollar by using it f…
Not sure I agree with the analysis, at least on France. France's top exports to the US are aircraft parts and beverages (wine). Since the US needs those parts to export the (assembled) planes, I think the aircraft lobby (e.g. Boeing) will press hard to prevent a tariff here because it'd raise rates across the board, so that leaves wine: My hunch is even a 100% tariff on wine is unlikely to dissuade anyone from purcha…
> the American wine is better,
Californian wine due to the drought has much higher alcohol %s in recent years.
This does impact the taste, and it's not all good.
Re: US launches inquiry into French plan to tax tech giants
#76Earlier quoted context omitted.
The US strong protectionism is not through tariffs but through tax incentives, targeted investments hidden as national security contracts and things like "buy american" acts. Just because you dress it up doesn't change what it actually is.
"The US strong protectionism is not through tariffs but through tax incentives, targeted investments hidden as national security contracts and things like "buy american" acts." what fraction of GDP is that? 1-5%? Europe semi public enterprises have a much bigger weight. Banking, energy, postal services, transport, telecommunications were until recent national monopolies and protecting domestic champions is still a ma…
Did you mention postal services? You mean like US, where only USPS has the right to put mail into your mailbox... and it's a federal criminal offense for anyone else to deliver mail into your mailbox?
Re: US launches inquiry into French plan to tax tech giants
#77> Countries including France and the UK have accused firms of routing some profits through low-tax EU member states such as Ireland and Luxembourg. This seems to be the problem. The EU laws have allowed these companies to avoid taxes. Small countries just next to France (Luxembourg) are able to help these companies. But France will not go against these countries and instead try to handle things through taxes. I don't…
You have to file a federal tax return to get an ITIN in US.
And there's a lot of taxes that US leverages...
Re: US launches inquiry into French plan to tax tech giants
#78I guess we'll get the usual response of the US trying to bring France to its knees by putting tariffs on wine and cheese.
They have different pressure means on France now, like what they did about Alstom which is a strategic company for France (they produce essential elements about nuclear plants, nuclear submarines for example) now in the US hand through General Electric.
France has a robust nationalization laws, btw.
If US becomes belligerent enough, Alstom may be taken away from GE.
Re: US launches inquiry into French plan to tax tech giants
#79Earlier quoted context omitted.
> by targeting US tech companies It does not. In a preliminary evaluation, there are 26 companies that would match the criterias, 11 are not americans, 4 of them (that's 1/6th) are even french companies to begin with. • Vente de biens: Alibaba, Amazon, Apple, Ebay, Google, Groupon, Rakuten, Schibsted, Wish, Zalando. • Intermédiaire de services: Amadeus, Axel Springer, Booking, Expedia, Match.com, Randstad, Recruit, S…
If my math is correct then most of the companies are American, and by far most of the potential revenue. Considering the rhetoric leading to this tax and the french government's many raids and failed investigations into US companies and their taxes it's difficult even with careful wording for the french government to deny the actual target of this tax in a WTO type setting.
For tax purposes most of those companies aren't even American.
Apple, Alphabet's subsidiaries, Microsoft, Amazon, etc. are companies registered in Ireland or Luxembourg, or the likes.
Re: US launches inquiry into French plan to tax tech giants
#80Earlier quoted context omitted.
The OP provided facts. Now is setting a certain threshold discriminatory, no idea. One interesting data point would be the percentage of US tech giants in total compared to those that fall under the proposed tax. If they are overrepresented it might be discriminatory, if not much less so.
How do you tax an industry if said industry is majoritarily composed of US companies without it being flagged as discriminatory ? If we look at it the other way it would mean US companies have a free pass.
So... Spotify and Microsoft are one single industry? That's an interesting definition, buddy.
And don;t forget that only the French sourced revenue is taxed.