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The Korea Herald
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THE INVESTOR
March 19, 2024

Mobile & Internet

Lawmaker calls for extended probe of Google

  • PUBLISHED :December 13, 2018 - 15:13
  • UPDATED :December 13, 2018 - 15:15
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[THE INVESTOR] Following the raid by Korea’s tax agency on the local unit of US tech giant Google on Dec. 12, as part of its efforts to investigate tax evasion charges linked to the firm’s video streaming service YouTube, a lawmaker from the ruling Democratic Party of Korea has insisted that the investigations should be extended to its headquarters in Mountain View, California.

“Most of Google’s sales generated in Korea are considered as part of the headquarters’ revenue in the US, not the local office,” said Kim Kyung-jin, a lawmaker who works as a member of an ICT committee of the National Assembly. 


Related:
Tax agency probes Google Korea
Google to set up data center in Korea next year

The National Tax Service officials have reportedly secured documents and computer files from the Korean office.

The latest probe, which is thought to be aimed at reviewing the details of tax records and income of high-earning YouTubers, came after NTS Commissioner Han Sung-hee said in October that the agency would try to look into some of the allegations.

It is suspected that some YouTube celebrities have avoided paying taxes by underreporting their earned income. The number of high-profile YouTube influencers with 100,000 and more subscribers reaches 1,275 in Korea.

The commissioner also said that the NTS had requested 513 YouTubers to report their exact income, but did not carry out any investigation at the time.

Some market watchers said the probe is a retaliatory move against Google, which has not been very cooperative with the Korean government and the ruling political party.

Google has refused to delete what the nation’s ruling party claimed to be fake news on the YouTube platform.

The tech giant has long been criticized for paying miniscule taxes while making a huge amount of profits here as well.

Google, which operates as a limited liability company here, is not obliged to disclose its local earnings. In addition, tech companies that do not own fixed information and communications technology facilities, such as data center, in the nation are not required to pay taxes by the local law.

Global IT behemoths like Google, Facebook, and Apple are often under fire for intentionally using this legal loophole to maximize their profits.

By Kim Young-won (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)

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