英国将对跨国企业征收"谷歌税"
George Osborne has announced plans to raise More than £1bn over the next five years from a new “diverted profits” tax on multinationals but details were scanty and advisers said it was not clear how the levy would work.
英国财政大臣乔治•奥斯本(George Osborne)宣布,未来5年计划针对跨国公司征收逾10亿英镑的“转移利润税”,但他没有透露具体细节,咨询师们表示,目前还不清楚这一税收将如何实施。The measure was unveiled by the chancellor yesterday as part of his Autumn Statement to “make sure that big multinational businesses pay their fair share”.
作为秋季预算报告(Autumn Statement)的一部分,奥斯本昨日宣布了这一举措,其目的是“确保大型跨国企业承担合理税赋比例”。The move, widely dubbed the “Google tax”, was described by Mr Osborne as a crackdown on “some of the largest companies in the world, including those in the tech sector, [that] use elaborate structures to avoid paying taxes”.
这项税收被普遍称作“谷歌税”(Google tax),奥斯本认为开征该税将打击“全球一些利用复杂结构避税的大型企业(包括科技企业)”。
Advisers questioned whether the measure, intended to raise £1.4bn in total by 2019-20, would be compatible with the UK’s double tax treaties.
顾问们对此举是否与英国的双重税收协定一致提出质疑,该举措打算到2019/2020年度,总共筹集14亿英镑税收。One executive at a leading technology company said the industry was unlikely to fight the measure but described the move as “unilateral action” that went beyond a continuing OECD examination of international tax reform.
一家领先科技公司的高管表示,科技行业不太可能对抗这一举措,但他认为此举属“单边行动”,不会符合经合组织(OECD)仍在继续的对国际税收改革的考察。“We’ll see what our tax experts make of it . . . but it’s for politicians to make laws, and we will follow them,” he said.
他表示:“我们要看看我们的税收专家怎么看……但制定法律的是政治人士,我们会遵从他们的决定。”Chris Morgan of KPMG, the professional services group, speculated that the new tax would be a “deemed profits” tax rather than a corporation tax, so as to sidestep issues raised by double tax treaties.
专业服务机构毕马威(KPMG)的克里斯•摩根(Chris Morgan)推测,新税收将属于“核定利润税”,而非企业税,因此将可以回避双重税收协定引发的问题。He suggested the Treasury would identify profits that escaped tax in the UK because of royalty arrangements or the absence of a taxable presence.
他认为,财政部将核定那些因使用费安排或者缺乏应纳税存在,而得以在英国避税的利润。He said: “It seems to be something completely novel . . . It is a huge stick that will stop this artificial avoidance. The difficulty will be how it is defined in practice.”
他表示:“这似乎是一种全新的税收……它具有巨大的震慑作用,将阻止人为避税。问题是实际操作中如何界定。”He described it as a “nuclear option” aimed at encouraging companies to adapt their structures to pay more tax in Britain. He said: “Companies that have been pushing the envelope will be very worried.”
他将此举称为一个“核选项”,旨在促使企业调整结构以在英国缴纳更多税赋。他表示:“那些打擦边球的企业会感到非常担忧。”