EC plans raft of new taxes for tech giants

US tech giants such as Google, Facebook and Amazon are set to be hit with new taxes as part of a crackdown by the European Commission.

Under proposals tabled yesterday which aim to ensure digital firms are taxed in a “fair and growthfriendly way”, the Commission plans to impose a 3 per cent levy on revenues of the biggest players.

The tax would apply to sales from digital activities which “escape the current tax framework” and will affect companies with total annual worldwide revenues of €750 million (£658m) and EU revenues of €50m (£44m).

The Commission expects the change to generate an estimated €5 billion (£4.3 bn) for member states if the tax is applied.

In addition, the Commission has proposed that corporate tax rules be reformed so that profits are registered and taxed where businesses have “significant interaction with users through digital channels”.

Thisplankwouldrelateto any country where a firm’s annual revenue exceeds €7m (£6m), or which has more than 100,000 users or over 3,000 digital service business contracts in a tax year.

Pierre Moscovici, commissioner for tax, said: “Europe is a huge source of revenues for digital firms.”