Brussels eyes big-tech revenue through broad levy on large corporations, FT reports
Brussels is reportedly weighing changes to its "Corporate Resource for Europe" levy so that large firms — including big US tech groups — pay more, without singling them out.
Brussels is considering taxing big US tech companies through a broad levy on large corporations — raising EU revenue while avoiding a Trump-administration backlash, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday.
The European Commission is working on new ways to capture more income from Apple, Meta and Google without singling them out, the paper said, citing six officials with knowledge of the discussions.
Under consideration are changes to the Commission’s “Corporate Resource for Europe” (CORE) proposal. Currently it would require all companies operating in the EU with revenue over €100m (~$112.32m) a year to pay a fixed annual levy of €100,000–€750,000 — capturing only a small share of a multinational’s earnings.
“Some EU capitals are opposed to a pure digital tax because they don’t want to upset the Americans, and many more are opposed to CORE,” an EU official told the FT. “The solution is to expand (the tax) to cover pretty much all the big companies.”
The Commission said it “remains ready to support the Council and European Parliament in reaching an agreement on the new own resources package”, needed to finance joint priorities.
The report comes as Donald Trump has threatened 100% tariffs on goods from countries imposing a digital services tax on American companies, with the US Trade Representative’s office arguing such levies discriminate against US firms.
Reuters could not immediately verify the FT report. The Commission, Apple, Google, Meta and the tech industry group CCIA did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment outside regular business hours.
Sources
- Reuters (reporting the FT), 7 Oct 2026: https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/brussels-looks-capture-big-tech-through-tax-large-corporations-ft-reports-2026-10-07/
- Agence Europe, 6 Oct 2026 (European Parliament own-resources estimates): https://agenceurope.eu/en/bulletin/article/13953/20/digital-services-tax-could-raise-up-to-eur175-billion-over-7-years-under-mff-2028-2034-according-to-european-parliament
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