EU tilts digital tax: New taxes for tech companies from 2028!

EU tilts digital tax: New taxes for tech companies from 2028!

The European Commission has made a radical decision in its new budget draft: the planned digital tax for large tech companies such as Apple, Microsoft, Google and Meta is deleted. This was officially announced by the Commission today, on July 15, 2025. The tax originally set up, which was intended to repay the debts from Corona pandemic, is now to be replaced by alternative sources of income that should come into force from 2028. Stadt-bremerhaven.de reports that the new proposals report an EU-wide tobacco tax, a tax on electronics tax and a sales tax for companies with a turnover of more than 50 million euros in the EU comprise.

How does this turn come about? The decision is closely linked to the ongoing trade talks between the EU and the USA. As part of these negotiations, possible special tariffs from the United States were temporarily suspended against European products. The EU now has 90 days to rethink possible countermeasures, including digital tax. But how does the EU want to deal with the new challenges? Golem.de notes in this context that the new sources of income in several member states remains unclear how and whether the suggestions are ultimately implemented become.

The perspective of the member states

The topic of digital tax has divided the entire EU. Politicians in Germany are majority for an introduction, since a five percent tax could give the states up to 37.5 billion euros in additional income annually. Nevertheless, an agreement at EU level remains difficult. According to Zeit.de , some countries want to avoid a digital tax at all costs, since they fear that this could lead to increased costs for consumers.

The negotiations show how complex the interaction between economic interests and political decisions is. While some countries aim to break the dominance of the large tech companies, industry associations such as Bitkom warn of the consequences of such a tax. They fear that this could ultimately increase prices for everyone. The trade dispute between the United States and the EU thus contributes to the uncertainty: a digital tax could increase the tax burden on tech companies, which currently only have to pay around ten percent on average.

The role of the economists and the future of tax policy

economists agree that a digital tax could be a suitable answer to the US tariffs, but the US response remains questionable. Another problem is that the EU itself cannot collect taxes, as this is the responsibility of the individual member states. So the topic remains hotly controversial. Zeit.de indicates that suggestions for the design of the tax also do not tax hardware or software, but especially want to target the advertising income of the companies.

Overall, the EU faces a difficult challenge when it comes to finding a fair and price -stable solution. How the situation will develop is uncertain, but one thing is clear: the discussions about digital tax and alternative sources of income are far from at the end.