Plans for a “Google Tax” in South Korea

South Korea’s government announced plans to implement a "Google Tax,” a tax on global technology companies that have avoided paying corporate taxes throughout the years. Because of South Korea’s tax structures, large tech corporations such as Google, Apple, and Amazon have been able to collect large profits while paying minimal taxes for operations conducted in South Korea. The government has taken some steps to address this problem. Earlier this year, taxes on app sales of Google and other technology multinationals have been raised by 10%.  Still, efforts to impose taxes on profits made in South Korea for all multinationals have been largely ineffective.

The United Kingdom is currently the only country to have imposed such a tax after its announcement of a 25% corporate tax last year. If South Korea successfully carries out this endeavor, it would become the second country to do so. Upon finalized revisions to local tax laws, the South Korean government is expected to release more specific details about the "Google Tax" in August 2016.

As of 2013, there were 9,523 multinational companies in South Korea, 15 of which earned more than 1 trillion won (equivalent to $890 million U.S. dollars) in the country. Out of the 9,523, 4,752 paid no corporate taxes at all.