The amount channelled through Google Netherlands Holdings BV was about €4bn more than in 2016, the documents, filed on 21 December, showed. “We pay all of the taxes due and comply with the tax laws in every country we operate in around the world,” Google said in a statement. The subsidiary in the Netherlands is used to shift revenue from royalties earned outside the US to Google Ireland Holdings, an affiliate based in Bermuda, where companies pay no income tax. The tax strategy, known as the “double Irish, Dutch sandwich”, is legal and allows Google to avoid triggering US income taxes or European withholding taxes on the funds, which represent the bulk of its overseas profits. Google Netherlands Holdings BV paid €3.4m in taxes in the Netherlands in 2017, the documents showed, on a gross profit of €13.6m.

Source: The Guardian January 03, 2019 22:41 UTC