Tax protest targets Google’s offices in Paris

Alain Jocard, AFP | A man walks past the logo of the US multinational technology company Google during the VivaTech trade fair in Paris on May 24, 2018.

Activists from an anti-globalization group have staged a protest at Google's Paris headquarters to criticize the company for paying little tax.

Attac members gathered at Google's offices Thursday and set up a pulley to pass bags of fake money between the firm's premises and a public finance center across the street.

According to Attac, Google's French subsidiary reported revenue of 325 million euros ($371 million) in 2017 and paid 14 million euros ($16 million) in income tax. The group says Google France shifts more than 85 percent of its French revenue to countries with more favorable tax regimes.

PARIS - Action surprise d’@attac_fr devant les locaux de #Google

Les militants demandent à la firme de payer ses impôts en France et d’arrêter l’évasion fiscale. pic.twitter.com/Sc2mURkly3

  Clément Lanot (@ClementLanot) January 31, 2019

So-called profit-shifting is technically legal in the EU, where foreign companies have their regional base in one country where they negotiate favorable tax terms.

France's finance minister, Bruno Le Maire, this month announced plans to tax multinational technology companies, like Google, that have revenues of at least 750 million euros worldwide and 25 million euros in France.

(AP)