“A historic agreement”: 136 of the 140 countries of the OECD / G20 Inclusive Framework have reached an agreement on the so-called minimum tax, which imposes a minimum tax of 15% on large multinationals, starting with the giants of the web. An agreement made possible, after years of intense negotiations, thanks to the accession of Ireland, Estonia and Hungary, which for a long time had opposed each other. It is an agreement that especially pleases Europe, which has made a lot of effort on the subject.
“I welcome today’s agreement on comprehensive tax reform. This is a historic moment. This is an important step towards making our global tax system fairer, ”commented European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
“The European Commission has strongly supported this international effort. I would like to thank Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni and his services for their tireless work in this regard, ”added the European president.
“Asking large companies to pay the right tax is not just a matter of public finance. It is above all a question of fundamental equity, ”adds von der Leyen. “We want a society in which there is a set of rules for everyone. All companies must pay their fair share ”, adds the number one of the community executive. “I know that getting to this point has required difficult choices for many countries, but we must look at the long-term benefits of this agreement,” German policy explained. It will strengthen our social market economy and our single market ”.
“Multilateralism is back”, underlined Gentiloni who was among the protagonists of this success and does not hide his happiness on social media. EU Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis also applauds, applauding these “excellent news” for global taxation. OECD Secretary General Mathias Cormann pays homage to what he considers a “great victory for effective and balanced multilateralism”.
“This is a far-reaching agreement – continues Cormann in a tweet – which guarantees that our international tax system is adapted to a digital global economy”. “Now – concludes the senior manager – we must work diligently to ensure the effective implementation of this major reform “.
The agreement will make it possible to guarantee the application of a minimum tax rate of 15% to multinational companies starting from 2023. The only four countries that have not joined are Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The remaining 136 who said ‘yes’, including Italy, represent “over 90% of world GDP”, specifies the OECD, adding that the agreement will allow “to re-allocate the benefits for over 125 billion dollars made by 100 multinational companies among the largest and most profitable in the world ».
Target? To make sure that “these companies can honor their fair share of taxes regardless of the jurisdictions in which they carry out their activities and realize benefits”. The political agreement reached in July by the members of the Inclusive Framework is thus finalized, with the aim of deeply reforming the tax rules of the planet. With the go-ahead from Dublin, Tallinn and Budapest, the agreement is now supported by all the member countries of the OECD, the European Union and the G20. Based on two pillars, the agreement is announced a few days before the G20 of finance ministers expected in Washington on 13 October and above all at the G20 summit in Rome at the end of the month. The minimum tax agreement, the OECD specifies, does not aim to “put an end to tax competition” but “to set limits agreed multilaterally. It will allow countries to collect about 150 billion annually in additional revenues ”.