Trump Orders Tariff Retaliation Against Digital Taxes on U.S. Tech Firms

The directive revives investigations into digital service taxes targeting American companies, potentially leading to new import tariffs.

President Trump has directed the U.S. Trade Representative to reopen investigations into digital service taxes (DSTs) imposed by several countries on U.S. tech companies like Google, Meta, Apple, and Amazon.
The move could result in retaliatory tariffs on imports from nations including Britain, France, Italy, Spain, Turkey, India, Austria, and Canada, which have implemented DSTs on digital service providers' local revenue.
A White House fact sheet claims these taxes cost U.S. firms over $2 billion annually, with Canada and France each collecting over $500 million per year from American companies.
Trump's administration will also review whether EU and British policies, such as the Digital Markets Act and Digital Services Act, incentivize practices that restrict free speech or promote censorship by U.S. firms.
This action follows earlier U.S. efforts under both Trump and Biden administrations to address DSTs, including proposed tariffs in 2021 that were suspended to allow global tax negotiations, which have since stalled.