Washington rejects the French proposal to tax the giants of the digital

AFP

Saturday, October 14 2017 15:49

UPDATE
Saturday, October 14 2017 15:54

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WASHINGTON | The u.s. secretary of the Treasury, Steven Mnuchin, objected Saturday to the French proposal to tax the giants of digital on their sales, considering that this measure was not relevant.

“I think that a tax based on turnover is not logical and that this is not going in the right direction,” said Mr. Mnuchin during a press conference at the end of the annual meeting of the international monetary Fund (IMF) and the world Bank in Washington.

“American companies are taxed everywhere in the world,” assured the secretary of the Treasury. “It is not, therefore, that companies in the digital sector are not taxed “, he added, saying that they, too, were taxed “at different places” and in different ways in the world.

A tax on turnover could weaken the companies that do not make profits like the platform Netflix, which accuses losses, said a specialist from the folder.

“We look forward to the discussions on the issues of international taxation “, has, however, affirmed the secretary of the Treasury, after the decision of the G20 Finance ministers ask the OECD to present proposals on the taxation of the giants of the digital at their next summit in April.

Also present in Washington, the French Finance minister, Bruno Le Maire, has defended his side the proposal that he presented at the end of September.

“Until we have an ideal device, we believe that it is necessary to have a robust device and this is our proposal for the taxation about the revenues,” he explained. “This is not a perfect proposition, but it is a proposition and which can be implemented quickly “, he stressed.

“I come back satisfied with the progress we have made in Washington on this matter,” he assured, stressing the decision of Mr. Mnuchin to create a bilateral working group with France on this subject.

“This is the first time that France and the United States agree to move forward on the ways and means of the taxation of the giants of the digital,” he said.

The Mayor had presented its proposal for a tax on the turnover of the giants of the digital at the end of September to the ministers of Economy and Finance of the EU in Tallinn (Estonia).

In response, the european Commission has announced its intention to propose in 2018 of new rules to better tax in the EU the giants of the digital, such as Google or Apple, despite the resistance of some member States.