Taxation of digital goods

Part of a series on
Taxation
An aspect of fiscal policy
Policies Economic justice Government revenue Property tax equalization Tax revenue Non-tax revenue Tax law Tax bracket Flat tax Tax threshold Taxation as theft Tax shift Tax cut Tax advantage Tax incentive Tax reform Tax harmonization Tax competition Double taxation Representation Medical savings account
Economics General Theory Price effect Excess burden Tax efficiency Tax incidence Laffer curve Optimal tax Fiscal illusion Theories Optimal capital income taxation Distribution of Tax Tax rate Flat Progressive Regressive Proportional
Collection Revenue service Revenue stamp Tax assessment Taxable income Tax lien Tax refund Tax shield Tax residence Tax preparation Tax protester Tax investigation Tax collector Tax withholding Private tax collection
Noncompliance Legal tax avoidance Base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) Double Irish Single Malt CAIA Dutch Sandwich Estate planning Repatriation tax avoidance Tariff engineering Tax credit Tax deduction Tax exemption Taxpayer groups Tax holiday Tax inversion Tax farming Tax patent Tax shelter Illegal tax evasion Tax amnesty Black market Debtors' prison Tax exile Smuggling Tax resistance Transfer mispricing Unreported employment Locations Tax havens Corporate havens Offshore financial centres (OFCs) Offshore magic circle Conduit and sink OFCs Financial centres Financial Secrecy Index Major examples Ireland as a tax haven Ireland v. Commission Leprechaun economics Liechtenstein tax affair Luxembourg Leaks Offshore Leaks Paradise Papers Panama Papers Swiss Leaks United States as a tax haven Panama as a tax haven
Types Direct Indirect Per unit Ad valorem Aviation Airport improvement Landing Solidarity Capital gains Expatriation Consumption Departure Hotel Sales Stamp Television Tourist Value-added Digital goods Dividend Environmental tax Carbon Eco-tariff Landfill Natural resources consumption Severance Steering Stumpage Excise Alcohol Cigarette Fat Meat Sin Sugary drink Tobacco General Georgist Gift Gross receipts Hypothecated Income Inheritance (estate) Land value Luxury Payroll Pigouvian Property Resource rent Single Surtax Turnover Use User charge/fee Congestion Fuel Road/GNSS Toll Vehicle miles traveled Corporate profit Excess profits Windfall Negative (income) Wealth
International Financial transaction tax ATTAC Currency transaction tax European Union Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base (CCCTB) Global minimum corporate tax rate Robin Hood tax Tobin tax Spahn tax Tax equalization Tax treaty Exchange of Information Permanent establishment Transfer pricing European Union FTT Foreign revenue rule
Trade Custom Duty Tariff Import Export Tariff war Free trade Free-trade zone Trade agreement ATA Carnet
Research Academic Mihir A. Desai Dhammika Dharmapala James R. Hines Jr. Ronen Palan Joel Slemrod Gabriel Zucman Advocacy groups Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) Oxfam (UK) Tax Foundation (US) Tax Justice Network (TJN) Tax Policy Center (US)
Religious Church tax Eight per thousand Teind Tithe Fiscus Judaicus Leibzoll Temple tax Tolerance tax Jizya Kharaj Khums Nisab Zakat
By country All Countries List of countries by tax rates Tax revenue to GDP ratio Tax rates in Europe Individual Countries Albania Algeria Argentina Armenia Australia Azerbaijan Bangladesh Bhutan Brazil Bulgaria BVI Canada China Colombia Croatia Denmark Finland France Germany Greece Hong Kong Iceland India Indonesia Iran Ireland Israel Italy Japan Kazakhstan Lithuania Malta Morocco Namibia Netherlands New Zealand Norway Pakistan Palestine Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Russia South Africa Sri Lanka Sweden Switzerland Taiwan Tanzania United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States Uruguay
Business portal Money portal
v t e

Digital goods are software programs, music, videos or other electronic files that users download exclusively from the Internet.^[1] Some digital goods are free, others are available for a fee. The taxation of digital goods and/or services, sometimes referred to as digital tax and/or a digital services tax, is gaining popularity across the globe.

The digital economy makes up 15.5% of global GDP in 2021 and has grown two and a half times faster than global GDP over the past 15 years, according to the World Bank.^[2] Many of the largest digital goods and services companies are multinational, often headquartered in the United States and operating internationally. There are significant differences in corporate tax rates between countries, and multinational companies can legally use base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) to report their profits against intellectual property held in low tax jurisdictions (tax havens) to reduce their corporation tax liabilities. This has led to many new legal and regulatory considerations. In the field of international taxation, there has been debate about whether the current rules are appropriate in the modern global economy, especially regarding the allocation of income and profits among countries and the effect of this on taxes paid in each country.^[3]

Almost 50 jurisdictions have made changes in their current legislation regarding the taxation to include the digital tax, or presented new laws focused on taxation of digital economy.^[4][5]