Google says it's free from UK's 'Google Tax'

London

GOOGLE'S top global tax executive told UK lawmakers that a new UK tax provision dubbed "the Google Tax" will not actually apply to the US technology giant.

The law, officially the Diverted Profits Tax, was introduced last year amid concerns that Google parent Alphabet Inc and other global tech companies were using their complex corporate structures to shift profits to offshore tax havens. It allows the government to charge a 25 per cent tax - 5 per cent above the standard UK corporate rate - on any profits it decides have been improperly moved out of the UK.