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Govt adamant that Google should pay ‘fair’ taxes
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Google headquarters in Mountain View, California. Indonesia's tax office plans to collect back income and value-added taxes from revenue Google generated in Indonesia over the last five years. It estimated that Google could be subject to fines of up to Rp 5.5 trillion (US$418 million) for 2015 alone. (via China Daily/-)
T
he government will push tech giant Google to comply with taxation regulations in the country in a bid to create a level playing field, where everyone has a fair and equal chance, a minister has asserted.
Communications and Information Minister Rudiantara explained that, as a global company operating in Indonesia, Singapore-based Google Asia Pacific, which is alleged to have withheld due taxes on substantial revenue earned through its advertising services in Indonesia, had to comply with the Indonesian taxation system.
"I am pushing for this because we have to apply a level playing field between international and national over-the-top (OTT) services. The national OTTs pay taxes, so why do foreign OTTs not pay taxes?" Rudiantara said at the State Palace in Jakarta on Wednesday.
The ministry issued a circular earlier this year permitting foreign individuals or legal entities to provide OTT services in Indonesia, with the obligation to set up a permanent establishment (BUT).
Earlier, tax investigators visited Google's office in Jakarta as part of an investigation into the company's alleged refusal to undergo a state audit of its tax obligations. The investigators were also seeking information about whether Google had a BUT in Indonesia, as the tax office plans to collect back income and value-added taxes on revenue Google generated in Indonesia over the last five years.
The taxation directorate general has estimated that Google could be subject to fines of up to Rp 5.5 trillion (US$418 million) for 2015 alone. (bbn)
