Slashdot Mirror
Google, Apple and Microsoft Squirm As Global Tax Schemes Scrutinized
An anonymous reader writes: Google, Apple and Microsoft chiefs were hauled in front of an Australian Senate Committee on Wednesday and forced to answer questions about their tax dodging structures. "Under questioning from Greens Senator Christine Milne, [Google's Maile Carnegie] revealed none of the revenue derived from Google's lucrative advertising business is taxed in Australia, rather it is booked in Singapore where the corporate tax rate is set at 17 per cent, as opposed to Australia's 30 per cent. ... However in the strongest defense yet of the company's complex tax structure, Ms Carnegie attempted to highlight the hypocrisy of criticising global technology companies for using the same approach that Australian mining firms, like Rio Tinto, use when deriving profits from China. 'These are international tax arrangements and what Google is doing in Australia is very very similar to what Australian companies are doing outside of Australia. I am not sitting here today trying to defend whether those practices are right or wrong, they are simply the way the global tax system is currently working and we are trying to operate within that.' Ms. Carnegie said it was up to the government to create a different system, which the company would then abide by."
Mis-reporting income and expenses is fraud last time I looked. This goes for businesses where one division over-charges another to shift profits from one country to another. These practices are coming under increasing scrutiny globally.
Then these companies will soon be in court on fraud charges, won't they?
Want to straighten the ad problem out fast? Sales tax in the country/state/county of purchase.
Yeah, let's put all those mom-and-pop Internet businesses out of business because they don't want the hassle of complying with the tax laws of three hundred pissant little countries. Right on! That'll stick it to the Man!
There has been a lot of evidence that all of these tax cuts don't benefit anybody but corporations, and that trick[le] down economics is pretty much not working as advertised.
In that respect, trickle-down economics is working exactly as intended. That trickle is a leak, they're working on plugging it.
Why can't all fpga/microcontroller manufacturers just release free optimizing compilers???
Or you know.. maybe take a business class.
tax Evasion is illegal.
tax Avoidance is perfectly legal and is taught in accounting classes in every business school.
If privacy had a tombstone it would read "We did it for your own good" . -- John Twelve Hawks
That's not true. Companies charge what the market can bear, and if they had lower taxes, they'd mostly just reap higher margins. Do you really think Apples prices would significantly rise if their tax burden went up? That's certainly not true of all markets.
jh