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We are all in this world together. It is insane that corporations have been able to reap untold profits while hardly being taxed at all. These companies could n

We are all in this world together. It is insane that corporations have been able to reap untold profits while hardly being taxed at all. These companies could not exist without the societies of the people who buy their products. They should pay taxes wherever they do business, even if fiat currency isn't changing hands (i.e., Facebook and Twitter free users) as specified here. Good move EU. Higher taxes on megacorps will improve quality of life globally and will ensure stronger societies that are more resilient to disaster (like the 2008 crash, or even a natural disaster). Higher taxes on megacorps will increase the probabilities of stable societies with healthy middle classes. Higher taxes on megacorps will enable more people to be entrepreneurs themselves, as more people will grow up with the resources and skills to start something of their own. It's win-win-win all around. If the megacorps want to earn more money, they should pay more tax. They'll earn more money in the long run that way. Edit: I'd love to reply to the comments below, but all you downvoters made that impossible. I'm now banned from commenting and replying on HN presumably from some automatic downvote ban switch. Thanks for silencing the debate downvoters and HN filters. Goodbye.

cromwellian 9y ago
Well, tax them on the money they make from EU sales then. I hardly see why the EU has a claim on revenues made by overseas companies on non-EU citizens. How about the US levy a tax on global BMW and Benz revenues?
- toomuchtodo 9y ago
  > I hardly see why the EU has a claim on revenues made by overseas companies on non-EU citizens. For the same reason the US government has claim on all global income of both its citizens and corporations. [1] [2] Corporations brought this on themselves by using accounting cleverness to "hide" billions in profits [3]. This is simply a regulatory response. Tech companies can choose not to operate in the EU as well. This gets to the crux of the problem: taxing where the use takes place, not where the corporation is located. [1] https://www.irs.gov/businesses/income-from-abroad-is-taxable https://www.irs.gov/businesses/income-from-abroad-is-taxable [2] https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/people-with-foreign-income-or-foreign-assets-have-us-tax-obligations https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/people-with-foreign-income-or-f... [3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_Irish_arrangement https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_Irish_arrangement
  - cromwellian 9y ago
    >For the same reason the US government has claim on all global income of both its citizens and corporations. Keyword "IT'S CITIZENS AND CORPORATIONS". The US government doesn't have a claim on all global income of companies that aren't US corporations. e.g. Alibaba. I can't wait to see your reaction when the Chinese government asks for 3% of global revenues of Siemens.
    - toomuchtodo 9y ago
      Let's address that when Siemens is evading taxes like US tech companies are. I can understand employees of US based tech companies might have strong feelings about this stance. I'd encourage reflection on taxes and how they pay for societal infrastructure.
      - cromwellian 9y ago
        The Panama Papers revealed Siemens dodging taxes, that's why I chose that example. http://www.dw.com/en/paradise-papers-expose-tax-schemes-of-global-elite/a-41246087 http://www.dw.com/en/paradise-papers-expose-tax-schemes-of-g... If the EU wants to pay for social infrastructure, they need to tax money made within their borders and encourage the development of their own economy. I support Google, Facebook, Apple, and other companies paying taxes on the business they do in your borders, and harmonization of tax rates and laws across the Atlantic, but not some kind of unilateral "Marshall Plan" of taxation without representation. This kind of tax scheme is just going to lead to retaliation, just like tariff trade wars. Do you really think the US Congress and Administration will sit idly by and let the EU slap, in effect, a global 3% tariff on US corporations and not retaliate? I fear a real storm on the horizon with all of this growing nationalism. You've got right wing movements cropping up in the EU, you've got nationalism in the US, EU, and China growing. I don't think trying to claim extra-territorial extra-jurisdictional revenues is a legitimate tactic. And I'm pretty sure you've lose your mind if the CCCP imposed a 3% global tax on your local companies for money they made that was unrelated to exports to China.
        9y ago
- cryptoz 9y ago
  > How about the US levy a tax on global BMW and Benz revenues? As long as those companies are pumping out gasoline cars that pollute the air and the environment around the US, that sounds like a great idea! Those companies are unfairly creating pollutants and encouraging their customers to raise the global temperature, dirty American's air, and everyone else's, etc. I would be pleased to see the US pose taxes on businesses that are actively harming Americans.
- Dwolb 9y ago
  This is akin to a franchaise tax. I'm pretty sure the thinking of the legislators is taxing net income is too easily manipulated. Therefore by taxing a 'small' (up for debate) amount of revenues there's less gamesmanship that can take place when determining tax liability. For reference, Texas charges a 1% tax on taxable margin over $1M with three options for determining taxable margin. This gives companies less wiggle room when determining tax liability
SamReidHughes 9y ago
What about the huge surplus value that Google's search engine provides society? I say we should confiscate money from everybody and give it to Google as a subsidy, because they're underpaid for what they do.
sintaxi 9y ago
Corporations pay +20% tax on profits, then provide jobs to people which are then taxed 30-50%. Corporations are providing loads of value to society. How on earth is this not enough? Honestly, if this is not enough money for the government to operate there are serious spending and accountability problems. A governments primary purpose is to protect rights of individuals. Its job is not to run the world. If we really want to help the middle class lets just let them keep more of the money they earn.
- vidarh 9y ago
  This is specifically targeting companies that are shifting profits around to avoid those 20%+ on profits by setting rules that are harder to work around.
- esarbe 9y ago
  There's a problem when these companies use international treaties and agreements to pay less tax than your local carpenter or grocery store or their own cleaning staff. It's a government's primary purpose to protect the rights of individuals. What these multinationals are doing is theft on all the other players.

cromwellian 9y ago

Well, tax them on the money they make from EU sales then. I hardly see why the EU has a claim on revenues made by overseas companies on non-EU citizens. How about the US levy a tax on global BMW and Benz revenues?

toomuchtodo 9y ago
> I hardly see why the EU has a claim on revenues made by overseas companies on non-EU citizens. For the same reason the US government has claim on all global income of both its citizens and corporations. [1] [2] Corporations brought this on themselves by using accounting cleverness to "hide" billions in profits [3]. This is simply a regulatory response. Tech companies can choose not to operate in the EU as well. This gets to the crux of the problem: taxing where the use takes place, not where the corporation is located. [1] https://www.irs.gov/businesses/income-from-abroad-is-taxable https://www.irs.gov/businesses/income-from-abroad-is-taxable [2] https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/people-with-foreign-income-or-foreign-assets-have-us-tax-obligations https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/people-with-foreign-income-or-f... [3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_Irish_arrangement https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_Irish_arrangement
- cromwellian 9y ago
  >For the same reason the US government has claim on all global income of both its citizens and corporations. Keyword "IT'S CITIZENS AND CORPORATIONS". The US government doesn't have a claim on all global income of companies that aren't US corporations. e.g. Alibaba. I can't wait to see your reaction when the Chinese government asks for 3% of global revenues of Siemens.
  - toomuchtodo 9y ago
    Let's address that when Siemens is evading taxes like US tech companies are. I can understand employees of US based tech companies might have strong feelings about this stance. I'd encourage reflection on taxes and how they pay for societal infrastructure.
    - cromwellian 9y ago
      The Panama Papers revealed Siemens dodging taxes, that's why I chose that example. http://www.dw.com/en/paradise-papers-expose-tax-schemes-of-global-elite/a-41246087 http://www.dw.com/en/paradise-papers-expose-tax-schemes-of-g... If the EU wants to pay for social infrastructure, they need to tax money made within their borders and encourage the development of their own economy. I support Google, Facebook, Apple, and other companies paying taxes on the business they do in your borders, and harmonization of tax rates and laws across the Atlantic, but not some kind of unilateral "Marshall Plan" of taxation without representation. This kind of tax scheme is just going to lead to retaliation, just like tariff trade wars. Do you really think the US Congress and Administration will sit idly by and let the EU slap, in effect, a global 3% tariff on US corporations and not retaliate? I fear a real storm on the horizon with all of this growing nationalism. You've got right wing movements cropping up in the EU, you've got nationalism in the US, EU, and China growing. I don't think trying to claim extra-territorial extra-jurisdictional revenues is a legitimate tactic. And I'm pretty sure you've lose your mind if the CCCP imposed a 3% global tax on your local companies for money they made that was unrelated to exports to China.
      - 9y ago
cryptoz 9y ago
> How about the US levy a tax on global BMW and Benz revenues? As long as those companies are pumping out gasoline cars that pollute the air and the environment around the US, that sounds like a great idea! Those companies are unfairly creating pollutants and encouraging their customers to raise the global temperature, dirty American's air, and everyone else's, etc. I would be pleased to see the US pose taxes on businesses that are actively harming Americans.
Dwolb 9y ago
This is akin to a franchaise tax. I'm pretty sure the thinking of the legislators is taxing net income is too easily manipulated. Therefore by taxing a 'small' (up for debate) amount of revenues there's less gamesmanship that can take place when determining tax liability. For reference, Texas charges a 1% tax on taxable margin over $1M with three options for determining taxable margin. This gives companies less wiggle room when determining tax liability

SamReidHughes 9y ago

What about the huge surplus value that Google's search engine provides society? I say we should confiscate money from everybody and give it to Google as a subsidy, because they're underpaid for what they do.

sintaxi 9y ago

Corporations pay +20% tax on profits, then provide jobs to people which are then taxed 30-50%. Corporations are providing loads of value to society. How on earth is this not enough? Honestly, if this is not enough money for the government to operate there are serious spending and accountability problems. A governments primary purpose is to protect rights of individuals. Its job is not to run the world. If we really want to help the middle class lets just let them keep more of the money they earn.

vidarh 9y ago
This is specifically targeting companies that are shifting profits around to avoid those 20%+ on profits by setting rules that are harder to work around.
esarbe 9y ago
There's a problem when these companies use international treaties and agreements to pay less tax than your local carpenter or grocery store or their own cleaning staff. It's a government's primary purpose to protect the rights of individuals. What these multinationals are doing is theft on all the other players.