The Guardian: “Amazon given €294m in tax credits as European revenues jump to €32bn”

Company says it made a loss last year due to investment and the competitive marke

Amazon received €294m (£258m) in tax credits last year that it can deduct from future bills for its European business, as revenues at the online retailer rose significantly to €32bn.

The company said it received the tax credits because it made a loss last year due to its investment programme and the highly competitive retail environment across Europe and the UK.

Amazon Europe made a pre-tax loss of €983m, before taking into account the tax credit, while revenues rose 15% year on year to €32bn. The company paid out €166.6m in licence and royalty payments, partly to affiliated businesses. Tax campaigners suggest such payments help reduce profits and tax payments in particular territories.

“Amazon pays all the taxes required in every country where we operate,” said a spokesman for the company. “Corporate tax is based on profits, not revenues, and our profits have remained low given our heavy investments and the fact that retail is a highly competitive, low-margin business.”

EU legislators got tough after years of relatively low tax payments by the US-based tech firm. In 2018, Amazon received €241m in tax credits on European revenues of €28bn. In 2017, Amazon paid €55m in tax on European revenues of €24.9bn, and €16.5m on revenues of €21.6bn in 2016.

Full article: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/apr/21/amazon-given-294m-in-tax-credits-as-european-revenues-jump-to-32bn

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