Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2019/07/30/grand-theft-taxation.html
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Rockstar Games made £4b between 2013-19, paid no corporate tax in the UK, claimed £42m in tax relief
Here’s my proposed remedy: corporations should be legally required to claim the same amount of profits in their tax statements and their earnings calls.
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£3.4b in bonuses? I’m obviously in the wrong line of work.
As it says… They gamed the system. OK, be outraged, but fix it so the gaming can’t happen or happen as badly.
To SOME extent there are always some combination of rules that are advantageous to someone. The question become who and when.
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Then they’ll claim $0 profit in the earnings calls with a wink wink nudge nudge to Wall Street.
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Seriously, why did you have the gall to not be born into a 0.1% family with a fast track to corporate board membership?
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Rockstar North claimed 19% of all available video game tax credits in the UK. The tax credit scheme was created to reward companies whose games make “a significant contribution to British culture” through “British settings, characters and development, and promoting cultural diversity.” GTA is set in a fictional California town.
The eligability for tax relief is based on criteria laid down here:
Per this page a game must score 16 points by those standards to be eligible:
I have to say, reading those standards I can’t see how they could justify giving it more than 15 points.
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Product generates £4,000,000,000, yet developer claims it only made £80,000,000
Normal people: “They must be lying for tax purposes!”
Game developers: “Wow, 2%, I wish my publisher was that generous.”
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Oh, man, if only I’d tried a bit harder in my previous life. 
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I’m sure that, when making such spectacular non-profits, there is probably plenty of money available to wine and dine the people apply those rules and award those points.
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