Google Accounts Show 11 Billion Euros Moved via Low Tax ‘Dutch Sandwich’ in 2014
By REUTERS

AMSTERDAM/LONDON — Google moved 10.7 billion euros ($12 billion) through the Netherlands to Bermuda in 2014, as part of a structure which allows it to earn most of its foreign income tax free.

Accounts for Google Netherlands Holdings BV published on Thursday show the unit transferred almost all its revenue, mainly royalties from an Irish affiliate through which most non-U.S. revenue is channeled, to a Bermuda-based, Irish-registered affiliate called Google Ireland Holdings.

The tax strategy is known to accountants as the “double Irish, Dutch Sandwich”. It allows Google, now part of holding company Alphabet Inc, to avoid triggering U.S. income taxes or European withholding taxes on the funds, which represent the bulk of the group’s overseas profits.

A Google spokesman said the company follows the tax rules in all the countries where it operates.

The decade-old arrangement allowed Alphabet to enjoy an effective tax rate of just 6 percent on its non-U.S. profits last year, around a quarter the average tax rate in its overseas markets.

Bermuda charges companies no income tax.

Corporate tax avoidance has risen to the top of the political agenda in European in recent years and Google in particular has been under pressure for the low tax it pays on profits generated from sales in the continent.

Last week Google was called to testify to a UK parliamentary committee about a 130 million pounds ($186 million) back tax bill, agreed with the British tax authority in January, that the Opposition Labour party described as “derisory”.

The deal brought Google’s total British tax bill for 2005 to 2015 to around 200 million pounds, whereas its UK revenue amounted to 24 billion pounds.

Google Netherlands Holdings NV, which has no employees, had a Dutch tax bill of just 2.8 million euros, its accounts showed.

借殼節稅 谷歌前年省800億

相關文件顯示，谷歌前年透過荷蘭子公司，將總額約120億美元的國際收入轉入百慕達一家空殼公司的名下，最後節稅24億美元（約台幣800億元）。

根據谷歌荷蘭子公司4日向荷蘭商會提交的相關文件，谷歌透過該公司轉入百慕達一家空殼公司名下的海外營業利潤，比前一年增加16%。

這項內幕披露的時機，正值谷歌因為在歐洲繳交相對小額的稅而在歐洲引起公憤之際。谷歌上個月與英國政府達成總額約1億8700萬美元（約台幣62億元）的10年帳目稽查和解；批評者說，該金額「微不足道」。

英國國會與政府為此展開調查，歐盟也展開詳細檢查。據悉，法國、義大利也正在與谷歌磋商解決稅賦爭執的事宜。在歐洲以外地區，澳洲國會近來也質疑谷歌是否繳交稅率公平的稅。

谷歌荷蘭子公司是所謂「雙重愛爾蘭」與「荷蘭三明治」稅賦結構的核心，因為它涉及將利潤自愛爾蘭一家子公司轉至荷蘭的一家子公司，再轉至另一家實際設在百慕達的愛爾蘭子公司名下。設在百慕達的企業不必負擔公司所得稅。

這種轉移使谷歌的母公司字母公司得將實際負擔的國際收入稅率維持在個位數。字母公司去年在美國以外地區負擔的稅率平均約僅6.3%。

谷歌說，相關計算方式並未反映實際用於決定它在個別司法權所及地區負擔的國際稅率。

愛爾蘭國會去年修補使谷歌得以少繳稅的稅制漏洞，然而已經採用「雙重愛爾蘭」稅賦結構的企業可以繼續使用至2020年底。

谷歌財務副總裁哈金森說，谷歌透過荷蘭子公司，將多數國際利潤轉至百慕達的複雜結構「站得住腳」，因為如果美國企業將它們的海外收入轉回美國，美國政府都會針對這些收入課稅。這導致許多跨國企華選擇將利潤留在海外。

原文參照：
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2016/02/19/business/19reuters-google-tax.html

2016-02-21．聯合晚報．B3．國際財經．編譯陳世欽