Freeland’s optimism about OECD tax deal on digital services ‘has increased a lot’
Posted Apr 21, 2021 2:00 pm.
Last Updated Apr 21, 2021 2:14 pm.
TORONTO — Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland says the government’s new digital services tax on large corporations is a step forward as Ottawa works toward a multilateral agreement it hopes to reach with other countries.
Freeland said during a post-budget conversation with the Canadian Chamber of Commerce that she’s increasingly optimistic such a deal can be reached after discussing it with U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and their European counterparts.
Monday’s federal budget outlined plans to put a three-per-cent tax on revenues from digital services that rely on data and content contributions from Canadian users. It would take effect Jan. 1 of next year and is projected to raise $3.4 billion in tax revenue over five years.
The tax would apply to businesses with gross revenue of at least 750 million euros, which Freeland says is about $1.125 billion Canadian dollars.
The government had indicated in December’s fiscal economic update that it planned to work on a digital tax with the OECD, a multilateral organization that includes the United States and other large economies.
Freeland says Canada’s proposed tax would later “dovetail” with any OECD measures.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 21, 2021.
The Canadian Press
