The Ministry of Finance has launched this Tuesday the public consultation to tax multinationals with a minimum taxation of 15% and avoid tax avoidance, as agreed by the countries that make up the OECD and endorsed by the European Union last December with the publication of a new community directive. it does in full controversy over the change of headquarters of Ferrovial to the Netherlandswhose average corporate tax rate is 25.8% (higher than Spain’s, at 25%), but which allows private agreements to be reached between the administration and multinationals on tax matters, in addition to offering tax exemptions Fixed on dividends.
He The moment chosen to launch this public consultation coincides with the struggle that the Executive has open with the del Pino familyand that has even led him to propose the use of the anti-opas shield to prevent the construction company from executing its change of venue and develop your reverse merger. Ferrovial, for its part, has assured today that does not need any state endorsement to continue with your intentions. He also defends that his transfer is to another country of the European Union and that the fiscal impact of the measure would be limited to reducing his payments to the Dutch Treasury by 2% compared to what he pays in Spain.
The procedure started today by the Executive of Pedro Sánchez implies opening to public participation the administrative procedure according to which the EU Directive 2022/2523 will be transposed. In it is establishes a complementary tax on income obtained by multinationals who are located in the Union, that will be taxed at a minimum effective and global rate of 15%.
The affected companies are those that obtain an annual income of more than 750 million euros, although it will exempt from its payment when, in that specific country, the turnover of the corresponding subsidiary is less than 10 million euros and the profits are less than 1 million euros. It also excludes public entities, international organizations, NGOs, pension funds and investment institutions.
The new directive is expected enters into force on December 31, 2023 and it will be applied effectively in the financial year 2024. The EU and the Government point out that this rule tries to solve the “erosion of tax bases, caused by the displacement of income from large companies to low-level countries or territories tax”, which becomes all those with a corporate tax with a value of less than 15%.
Designed with a complementary character, this tax will be calculated as the difference in taxation between the global minimum rate of 15% and the effective tax rate in that country or territory. A new calculation will be applied to the “excess profit” that the multinational obtains in that country with low taxation, which subtracts some “income linked to economic substance” (set at 5% of the wage costs of the workers and the book value tangible assets) to net earnings.
It will be governed by two financial rules: the first, relative to the inclusion of income, means that if a multinational company has its headquarters in Spain, it must calculate and pay a supplementary tax on the income obtained by those subsidiaries located in territories with a tax level of less than 15%.
On the other hand is the rule on undertaxed profits, whose effective application is delayed to 2025 and according to which, the same parent company must bear the corresponding amount in the event that in that third country where the subsidiary is located it does not apply the income inclusion rule, or has a low tax level.
The European Union It also allows each State to set an additional “admissible” tax on companies located in its territory when it has a low tax level. This national tax will be subtracted from the calculation of the new global tax.
