It should be 15 percent: the USA specifies the global minimum tax


It should be 15 percent
USA specify global minimum tax

In the debate about a worldwide minimum tax for companies, the US has now proposed a specific quota. The international competition “downwards” must be stopped. With a global tax rate, corporations could be prevented from engaging in tax avoidance strategies.

The US advocates worldwide corporate taxation at a rate of at least 15 percent. In two-day negotiations with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the G20 group of states, the US Treasury Department proposed this tax rate as a minimum, as announced in Washington. The aim of the ministry is therefore to move this tax rate up as far as possible in the negotiations.

In a speech at the beginning of April, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen had pleaded for the global minimum taxation of companies, but at that time she did not give a specific tax rate. She said international cooperation was needed on the issue to prevent tax competition and erosion of the tax base.

The US initiative met with a positive response in Germany and France. Federal Finance Minister Olaf Scholz (SPD) and his French colleague Bruno Le Maire said in an interview with the online portal of “Zeit” in April that they were basically prepared to support a global minimum tax rate for companies of up to 21 percent. The OECD is promoting a 21 percent tax rate.

USA wants to prevent other low taxes

The US Treasury Department has now reiterated that international competition in corporate taxes must be stopped “downwards”. Low taxes would undermine the ability of the US and other countries to “generate the income needed to make substantial investments.”

US President Joe Biden wants to raise corporate taxes in his own country in order to finance a two trillion dollars (around 1.65 trillion euros) infrastructure program. According to his plans, the tax rate is to rise from the current 21 percent to 28 percent.

Plans for a worldwide minimum taxation for companies have been around for a long time. The topic is also an important concern of the federal government in Berlin. The background to this is the tax avoidance strategies of large corporations that, for example, mathematically shift profits to countries with low tax rates.

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