Chancellor Sajid Javid Says UK Will Proceed With Digital Sales Tax, Despite U.S. Protest

Sajid Javid

LONDON – UK Chancellor Sajid Javid confirmed that the country will introduce a digital sales tax in April. That is despite public opposition from U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin (via BBC News).

Sajid Javid

Steve Mnuchin Warns Sajid Javid Not to Introduce New Tax

Speaking on a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Mr. Javid called the new tax, which will affect major tech firms, “proportionate.” He confirmed that it will come into force from April. However, Mr. Mnuchin, appearing alongside his UK counterpart on the panel, said:

We think the digital tax is discriminatory in nature… if people want to arbitrarily put taxes on our digital companies we’ll consider arbitrarily putting taxes on car companies.

Consequences For Apple

The UK Government announced its plans for a digital sales tax back in April. Due to the revenue generated by the App Store in the UK, it seems likely that the 2 percent tariff would be applied to Apple. However, Mr. Javid made clear on Wednesday that he is looking to secure an international deal on the issue. On Tuesday, France postponed the introduction of a similar levy.

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