There is a saying that goes: we are all going to die, and we all got to pay taxes. Right? Well, not so fast. Let’s know Does amazon pay taxes?
Amazon is one of the most profitable companies, earning billions of dollars every year. For instance, in 2020, it made, in revenue, more than 386 billion dollars. That is quite a pile of cash. The company has almost one million five hundredth million employees worldwide.
It was founded in 1994 by Jeff Bezos, the richest man on the planet. Bezos had read, back then, that the Internet was one big thing and growing tremendously. So wanted to get on that wave. It started as a company that sold books, just books. Now, what doesn’t he sell?
But now, does Amazon pay taxes?
The information is a little mixed. On the one hand, they say that yes, they do. As they stated in a blog on their website, they say they paid, in 2019, 2.4 billion in federal taxes and 1.6 billion in state and local taxes. On that blog post, they say they do more than just that. For example, they say that since 2010, they’ve invested more than 350 billion dollars in corporate offices, customer fulfillment and cloud infrastructure, wind and solar farms, eco-friendly equipment and machinery, and more. Also, they state that they have created more than 800,000 jobs in the United States alone, across 40 states. They are the second-largest contractor in the world, only behind Walmart, but they are the fastest-growing. Hence, they do their part, right? They take and they give back. Not so fast. Let’s take a look at more information.
But what about the years before that?
Amazon is not lying, but apparently, they are not telling the whole truth. It appears that before that, for nearly two years, they paid the exact amount of 0 dollars in federal taxes. In fact, because of deductions and tax credits, they got back 129 million from the government. This was during the Donald Trump epoch. Trump lowered the tax on corporations, helping the big corporations crusade to pay little to no taxes.
So, do they pay taxes? Eventually, they did, but after some years of not paying at all, as you can see. Pressure does work even in the biggest of companies. They are almighty, but they can succumb to pressure, just like everybody.
Is Amazon alone not paying taxes?
Is this like a one-company thing? Or is it more like a group thing? According to studies, all the big tech companies are the same. That is Microsoft, Amazon, Facebook, Google, Netflix, and Apple. Some of the biggest companies in the world pay little to no taxes at all. The way to do it is by shifting their earnings through tax heavens (places where you don’t pay taxes) or low-tax countries.
However, all of them said the contrary. These six companies state that they pay what they owe in every market they operate, although the numbers and the information say otherwise. But they are not just too big to fail, they are too big to make them do anything. Or would you go into a fight with Facebook or Microsoft?
Should they pay taxes?
Some say that if a company is big enough, that drives the economy forward and should not pay taxes. That is because they generate wealth in other ways. That is, by creating jobs and investing in buildings and stuff, so, on top of all this, they pay taxes too!? No way, some people say. But, as all things human, there is a counter opinion to this. They say that we all must pay our fair share to carry this society forward. And that is, they are the wealthiest of them all, and taxes are a way of improving our community. What do you think?
The rest of the world
Places like Japan have tried to charge taxes to Amazon with little success.
The same happened in the United Kingdom. With Starbuck and Google, they are also being investigated for tax-avoiding.
So, it happens everywhere. In México, new legislation was created to make companies like Airbnb and Uber pay taxes. Of course, these companies are not near as big as the big six. But the point here is that some effort is being made to tax these new digital companies.
Conclusion
You can’t say that Amazon never pays taxes, but they certainly pay less than they should, that is for sure. Now, should they pay? We believe that, yes, they should pay their fair share because it is obscene the fortunes that they have. How else will we fight inequality, poverty, and other diseases of capitalism? We must all do our part. And yes, that has to go beyond what these big companies invest in and create the jobs that they do. Taxes are a way to give back as well. They are used to develop hospitals, universities, roads, and many more things.
FAQ
How come billionaires don’t pay taxes?
They do it, by giving themselves a very little salary while growing enormous fortunes in stocks and other assets.
Can I not pay taxes?
You can lower your taxes by investing more in a retirement savings plan, healthcare, and child care.
