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Google saves $2B in taxes by sheltering $10B in revenue in Bermuda
CNET ^ | 12/10/2012 | Shara Tibken

Posted on 12/10/2012 9:18:06 AM PST by Obadiah

Google avoided about $2 billion in global income taxes last year by shifting $9.8 billion in revenue into a Bermuda shell company, Bloomberg reported.

That level is almost double the total from three years ago, Bloomberg said, citing a Nov. 21 regulatory filing by a Google subsidiary in the Netherlands. And it allowed Google to cut its overall tax rate almost in half.

Google's action -- moving about 80 percent of its total pretax profit from 2011 to tax-free Bermuda -- isn't illegal. On the contrary, many companies have taken similar steps in recent years to avoid paying steep taxes.

Some, like Cisco and Qualcomm, have pushed for tax holidays that would allow them to bring foreign-held cash back to the U.S. at much lower tax rates. They have argued that such holidays would allow them to create more jobs and help the economy, but critics say that's often not true. Instead, companies often institute dividends and other policies to reward investors and executives.

(Excerpt) Read more at news.cnet.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: 1percent; 2012; corruption; democrats; economy; ericschmidt; evil; fraud; google; hypocrisy; hypocrites; liberalhypocrisy; liberals; loophole; notfair; obama; obamavoters; obamites; offshore; payyourfairshare; progressives; redistribution; richcorporations; sharethewealth; spreadthewealth; taxes; taxesfortheenotme; taxtherich
So Eric Schmidt is right there with John Kerry and Tim Geitner and Warren Buffet in professing their for increasing taxes yet assiduosly working to avoid paying them themselves. I guess Leona Helmsley was correct after all.
1 posted on 12/10/2012 9:18:18 AM PST by Obadiah
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To: Obadiah

Google is a huge Obama supporter.


2 posted on 12/10/2012 9:24:44 AM PST by Jyotishi (Seeking the truth, a fact at a time.)
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To: Obadiah

Obama will be pushing to get that ended; he wants that money.


3 posted on 12/10/2012 9:24:44 AM PST by txnativegop (Fed up with zealots)
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To: Obadiah

Bump


4 posted on 12/10/2012 9:32:30 AM PST by lowbridge (Joe Biden: "Look, the Taliban per se is not our enemy.")
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To: Obadiah

Why not? If it legal. However, if its not legal shoot the Bass Turds.


5 posted on 12/10/2012 9:57:50 AM PST by Don Corleone ("Oil the gun..eat the cannoli. Take it to the Mattress.")
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To: Don Corleone
It's not the legality, it's the hypocrisy.
6 posted on 12/10/2012 10:15:10 AM PST by Obadiah (How do you know that the light at the end of the tunnel isn't a muzzle flash?)
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To: txnativegop

“Obama will be pushing to get that ended; he wants that money.”

I wish. Google is a super Democrat funding machine, plus the Democrats work with Google to data mine your searches to direct voting messaging to your area.

Google won’t be paying any additional taxes any time soon. GE either.

Normally, I would say “good for them.” Use every means necessary to deny confiscation of profit, but for Google I kinda wish they’d get bit.

Of course, maybe the Republicans should name something the Google Tax Avoidance Act and make a big stink just for fun.

The true path to becoming a Super-Liberal is figuring how to legislate the liberal burden to everyone... except yourself. Google has it.


7 posted on 12/10/2012 10:15:30 AM PST by Noamie
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To: Obadiah

What’s hypocritical about sheltering money? Do you take advantage of pre-tax payments, IRA’s, deductions, and etc?

The USA has the HIGHEST Corporate Tax Rate in the world. It is expected that billion dollar corporations use off-shore shelters; it would be foolish of them not to.

Politics aside - All major corporations use off shore accounts.


8 posted on 12/10/2012 10:37:39 AM PST by Responsibility2nd (NO LIBS. This Means Liberals and (L)libertarians! Same Thing. NO LIBS!!)
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To: Jyotishi

Google is a huge Obama supporter.


So is Jeffrey Immelt, CEO of GE. And GE paid ZERO federal US taxes.


9 posted on 12/10/2012 10:38:04 AM PST by Hotlanta Mike ("Governing a great nation is like cooking a small fish - too much handling will spoil it." Lao Tzu)
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To: Obadiah

I’ve only seen Eric Schmidt profess that ‘he’ would be willing to pay more in taxes, not that he advocated for other people for paying higher taxes. He could have, I might have missed that one.


10 posted on 12/10/2012 10:42:33 AM PST by Theoria (Romney is a Pyrrhic victory.)
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To: Responsibility2nd

corporate tax should be FAR lower...certainly would create more jobs and wealth for stock holders, which is a good thing.

the hypocracy of Costco to rush out dividend payments now, while supporting the the prez that makes that necessary...that’s what bugs me..

same thing with Google.. big dems... except when it comes to their peoples money... then they act as conservatives..


11 posted on 12/10/2012 11:27:59 AM PST by Chuzzlewit
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To: Obadiah

Good for them.


12 posted on 12/10/2012 11:33:54 AM PST by Revolting cat! (Bad things are wrong! Ice cream is delicious!)
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To: Obadiah

Google pays taxes here in the US. This article is about how they avoid paying taxes on their overseas earnings, primarily in Europe, which is why it says the UK, France, Italy, etc., are investigating.

The original Bloomberg article (which your’s links to) had a lot more info in it. Even had fun terms in it like “Double Irish” and “Dutch Sandwich”. Those are tax-avoidance strategies, regardless of how they sound...


13 posted on 12/10/2012 12:14:00 PM PST by green iguana
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To: Responsibility2nd

The hypocrisy is in the CEO being one of those people loudly demanding taxes increase on the rich on corporations WHILE his company hides money from taxes. If he thinks companies should be paying more taxes then the first thing he should do is have his company pay more taxes.


14 posted on 12/10/2012 12:18:05 PM PST by discostu (Not a part of anyone's well oiled machine.)
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To: discostu

Concur. Thank you.


15 posted on 12/10/2012 12:31:38 PM PST by Obadiah (How do you know that the light at the end of the tunnel isn't a muzzle flash?)
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To: Obadiah

We’ve seen the rise of the samizdat in the USA —that’s us. Now we see the slow but sure institution of a nomenklatura system, here:

Talk up the merits of high tax, and as an insider, you avoid penalty and censure.

And if you’re a loaded-to-the-gills privacy invader, just stash your loot abroad, tax-free, as you fund re-election of a dictator and land your enormous private jet at a NASA facility.

The topper? Rollerblade around your HQ, spouting BS like, “Don’t be evil”.


16 posted on 12/10/2012 12:44:44 PM PST by gaijin
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To: green iguana

Google has around six months left in Europe before they start to face major problems. The Germans are all over them about the tax issue. I don’t see how they avoid paying the Germans their share.


17 posted on 12/10/2012 3:05:06 PM PST by pepsionice
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