(March 10): Meta Platforms is asking advertisers to cover the costs of digital services taxes, levies imposed by countries on local sales made by technology firms.
The company emailed advertisers to inform them of new “location fees”. These will apply to digital ads delivered in particular countries, even if the advertiser isn’t based there.
Meta, which owns social networks Facebook and Instagram and messaging service WhatsApp, said the extra charges will kick in on July 1. The company said in its email it had absorbed the fees up till now. Alphabet Inc’s Google and Amazon.com Inc both charge similar fees.
Meta declined to comment.
Businesses buying ads on Meta’s platforms will be charged an additional amount, corresponding to the digital tax rate in the country where they are showing the ad. Both image-based and video ads will be affected, according to the email, which was seen by Bloomberg.
The policy is set to apply to Austria, France, Italy, Spain, Turkey and the UK. France, Italy and Spain’s digital service tax rate is 3%, while Austria and Turkey charge 5% and the UK 2%. The taxes have been introduced at different points, starting with France in 2019.
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“If you deliver US$100 in ads to Italy, where there is a 3% location fee, you will be charged US$100 [ad delivery], plus US$3 [location fee], for US$103 total,” the company wrote. “Note that any applicable VAT will be calculated on top of the total amount.”
Several European countries — though not the European Union as a bloc — have imposed taxes on regional sales by the biggest US technology firms. Many tech companies report substantial sales in Europe and millions of users, but pay minimal tax on profits. The goal is to claw back locally derived economic value.
President Donald Trump’s administration has responded angrily to digital services taxes and has threatened to retaliate against Europe’s largest companies by imposing its own fees or restricting access to the US market.
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Meta reported US$201 billion in revenue for 2025, with the majority of that coming from ads. Net income was US$60.5 billion for the year.
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