India, 135 Other Nations Agree On Landmark Global Corporate Tax Deal
NDTV
India also had qualms up to the last minute, but ultimately backed the deal that set a minimum global tax rate of 15 per cent for big companies and sought to make it harder for them to avoid taxation.
A group of 136 countries on Friday set a minimum global tax rate of 15 per cent for big companies and sought to make it harder for them to avoid taxation in a landmark deal that US President Joe Biden said levelled the playing field.
The deal aims to end a four-decade-long "race to the bottom" by setting a floor for countries that have sought to attract investment and jobs by taxing multinational companies lightly, effectively allowing them to shop around for low tax rates.
Negotiations have been going on for four years and while the costs of the coronavirus pandemic gave them additional impetus in recent months, a deal was only agreed when Ireland, Estonia and Hungary dropped their opposition and signed up.
Moreover the 15 per cent floor agreed is well below a corporate tax rate which averages around 23.5 per cent in industrialised countries.