Hungary proposes Google tax

Bratislava, September 10 (MTI) – The Hungarian government has proposed the introduction of a withholding tax on internet-based services such as Google, Facebook, Starbucks or Amazon.

Economy Minister Mihály Varga told an informal meeting of European finance ministers in Pozsony (Bratislava) on Saturday that a certain percentage of any payment made to a service provider in another country could be automatically withheld to serve as coverage for unpaid tax in the country where the service was used.

Varga argued that “digital ventures” must also bear a part of the pubic burden, and suggested that the initiative should be adopted as part of the EU’s efforts to fight tax evasion or fraud.

The Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia, the other three countries in the Visegrad cooperation, have supported the Hungarian proposal, Varga said.

Source: MTI