France To Levy Digital Tax Starting Jan 2019
Posted on 2019-01-10
The French Government has decided to bring forward the introduction of a national tax on digital companies following the failure of European Union member states to agree on an EU-wide digital services tax.
Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire informed a press conference on December 17 that a French digital tax would be introduced on January 1, 2019, and would raise an estimated EUR500m (USD567m) next year. However, the exact scope of the tax has yet to be determined.
After EU finance ministers failed to reach an agreement on a proposed digital services tax earlier this month, Le Maire indicated that France would continue to push for an EU solution early in 2019, but would seek to legislate for a national digital tax if no agreement could be reached by next March.
However, it is thought that the French Government has decided to accelerate the introduction of a national digital tax to offset proposed new tax cuts for individuals in the wake of street protests against its tax policies.
Source: Tax-News.com
