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Agreement on the global corporate tax reform

The latest development in the field of the global minimum corporate tax is that on 1 July 2021, 130 countries joined the declaration establishing a new framework for the international reform, on the basis of which the agreed minimum corporate tax rate will be 15% for each country. An important element is that several countries, including Hungary, have not joined the declaration. According to the declaration, the finance ministers of the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Japan, Germany, France and Italy have committed themselves to introducing a global minimum tax, preventing countries with low tax rates from attracting businesses. The goal of the global minimum corporate tax regulation would be that if the tax liability of a subsidiary of a multinational company does not reach the minimum specified level, the difference must be paid by the parent company in its own country. The declared aim is therefore to ensure that companies with global activities are taxed at the appropriate level where they made their goods or services.

Corporate tax rates currently vary widely across the world, with substantial differences even at the continental level. According to OECD aggregates, the average rate in Africa is the highest at 28.5%, but it is not far behind (at 27.5%) in the South American countries. North America has slightly lower average levels, while both Europe and Asia have relatively moderate rates of around 20%. Slovakia applies 21% and the Czech Republic and Poland 19%, while Lithuania is now at the target of a minimum of 15%. In the OECD field, Hungary has the lowest nominal rate, only 9%. According to OECD figures, the most common rates globally are 20% and 30%.