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Facebook Tax Bill Over Ireland Move Could Cost $5B

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Re: Facebook Tax Bill Over Ireland Move Could Cost $5B

#3
>The IRS claims Facebook’s tax adviser Ernst & Young LLP undervalued the company’s property as it was transferred to Facebook Ireland Holdings Ltd. by evaluating pieces of the online platform separately, according to court filings ... “I don’t think Facebook is necessarily hiding anything, but it’s a fight over pricing,” said Stephen Hamilton, a tax lawyer in Philadelphia. “This is what companies do when they transfer their own assets; they try to value them as low as possible and when the issue is litigated, they usually end up somewhere in the middle."

It's kind of sad that a team of E&Y accountants and lawyers have probably added more "value" to Facebook by playing this legal tax evasion game with the IRS than an entire team of developers and product managers adding a big new feature.

Re: Facebook Tax Bill Over Ireland Move Could Cost $5B

#4
post #2

How can countries avoid the spiral of death with taxing? I hate how google, facebook etc. makes hundreds of millions in my country, but barely pay taxes. While local companies do.

Seems like he only long term answer is somehow to make global companies beholden to a global tax authority, but no idea how that would work on a planet with sovereign nations.

Re: Facebook Tax Bill Over Ireland Move Could Cost $5B

#5
post #2

How can countries avoid the spiral of death with taxing? I hate how google, facebook etc. makes hundreds of millions in my country, but barely pay taxes. While local companies do.

Companies want to pay no taxes, but they want protection from the legal system infrastructure etc. that allows a company to be successful.

Re: Facebook Tax Bill Over Ireland Move Could Cost $5B

#6
I cannot understand the indignation, the system is working exactly as designed- board members have responsibilities to the shareholders to maximise profits, it would be imprudent if they didn't move to reduce tax burden. The miles of column inches written on this topic is being tediuos.

Solutions are simple, anyone telling you otherwise are the same people who hold economists in high regard-

1. Reduce your local tax to compete with the lowest one. Or-

2. Stop the company from trading in your country. Or-

3. Tax profits derived from local business if they are earning them in your country.

Re: Facebook Tax Bill Over Ireland Move Could Cost $5B

#7
post #4
post #2

How can countries avoid the spiral of death with taxing? I hate how google, facebook etc. makes hundreds of millions in my country, but barely pay taxes. While local companies do.

Seems like he only long term answer is somehow to make global companies beholden to a global tax authority, but no idea how that would work on a planet with sovereign nations.

It would be additional global tax from capital. If you are interested more read "Capital in the Twenty-First Century" by Thomas Piketty.

Re: Facebook Tax Bill Over Ireland Move Could Cost $5B

#8
post #2

How can countries avoid the spiral of death with taxing? I hate how google, facebook etc. makes hundreds of millions in my country, but barely pay taxes. While local companies do.

Companies want to pay no taxes, but they want protection from the legal system infrastructure etc. that allows a company to be successful.

You can't have cake and eat cake. Without taxes there would be no system at all. It's a shame that small companies pay for this system and big corporations use this system but evade paying. No justice in this.

Re: Facebook Tax Bill Over Ireland Move Could Cost $5B

#9
post #6

I cannot understand the indignation, the system is working exactly as designed- board members have responsibilities to the shareholders to maximise profits, it would be imprudent if they didn't move to reduce tax burden. The miles of column inches written on this topic is being tediuos. Solutions are simple, anyone telling you otherwise are the same people who hold economists in high regard- 1. Reduce your local tax…

No, it's not that simple.

1. What if you can't ? You have your budget that can't go lower.

2. And what if it employs 100 000 people in your country? Good luck with that.

3. You know what costs are ? Because they can have 0 earning in your country when mother company will take all for licensing.

Re: Facebook Tax Bill Over Ireland Move Could Cost $5B

#10
post #6

I cannot understand the indignation, the system is working exactly as designed- board members have responsibilities to the shareholders to maximise profits, it would be imprudent if they didn't move to reduce tax burden. The miles of column inches written on this topic is being tediuos. Solutions are simple, anyone telling you otherwise are the same people who hold economists in high regard- 1. Reduce your local tax…

Wouldn't #1 result in a race to the bottom? Why wouldn't a foreign country use tax policy to lower their corp rates towards zero in order to attract foreign tax revenue? After all, some tax is better than no tax.
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