Exclusive-Italy seeks payment from Meta, X and LinkedIn in landmark tax case

Reuters

Wed, Mar 26, 2025, 9:08 AM 2 min read

MILAN (Reuters) -Italy has handed taxation demands to Meta, X and LinkedIn successful the past ceremonial measurement successful an unprecedented VAT assertion against the U.S. tech giants that could person repercussions crossed the European Union, 4 sources with nonstop cognition of the substance said connected Wednesday.

While it has been reported that Facebook and Instagram genitor institution Meta and Elon Musk's societal web X were nether probe for alleged taxation fraud, it had not been disclosed that Microsoft's LinkedIn portion was besides caught up successful Italy's aviator VAT lawsuit for the tech assemblage successful Europe.

Italy is claiming 887.6 cardinal euros ($961 million) from Meta, 12.5 cardinal euros from X and astir 140 cardinal euros from LinkedIn.

These figures notation to the full play nether investigation, from 2015-2016 to 2021-2022, depending connected the case, but the taxation appraisal announcement present served lone covers the years for which claims are acceptable to expire, namely 2015 and 2016.

While the taxation claims are comparatively tiny for these companies, the lawsuit is important arsenic it hinges connected the mode societal networks supply entree to their services.

Italian taxation authorities reason that idiosyncratic registrations with X, LinkedIn and Meta platforms should beryllium seen arsenic taxable transactions arsenic they connote the speech of a rank relationship successful instrumentality for a user's idiosyncratic data.

In a connection to Reuters, Meta said it would not remark connected the details of this case, reiterating that it had cooperated "fully with the authorities connected our obligations nether EU and section law."

It added that the institution "strongly disagrees with the thought that providing entree to online platforms to users should beryllium taxable to VAT."

LinkedIn said it had "nothing to stock astatine this time."

X did not respond to a petition for remark from Reuters.

The lawsuit could yet beryllium extended to the 27-nation European Union since VAT is simply a harmonised EU tax, and unit a rethink of the concern exemplary of the tech industry.

According to respective experts consulted by Reuters, the Italian attack could impact astir each companies, from airlines to supermarkets to publishers, who nexus entree to escaped services connected their sites to users' acceptance of profiling cookies.

(Reporting by Emilio ParodiEditing by Keith Weir)