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French lawmakers progress tax on American Big Tech amid huge pushback

PARIS — French lawmakers are moving ahead with plans to double a tax on big tech firms — backing away from a more aggressive push amid fears of provoking U.S. trade retaliation.

France’s National Assembly voted Tuesday night in favor of hiking a digital service tax on tech companies including Google, Apple, Meta and Amazon to 6 percent, up from 3 percent.

The French government is against the move, with Economy Minister Roland Lescure warning that a “disproportionate” tax would lead to “disproportionate” retaliatory measures.

Lawmakers had initially pushed to hike the levy to 15 percent to hit back at U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff war, sparking strong reactions from across the Atlantic. Industries in France that fear trade retaliation have also called for caution.

The amendment has yet to survive a final vote on the country’s 2026 budget law next week, after which it must pass the French Senate.

As well as increasing the tax, the measure would raise the global revenue threshold from €750 million to €2 billion — a bid to shield smaller national players from the scope of the proposal.

“The new proposal appears to exclusively target U.S. companies, which will likely spur retaliation impacting the broader French economy,” John Murphy, the senior vice president and head of international at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said last week. “Cooler heads must prevail.”

“The objective of this tax was not to harm the United States in any way … I say this to the Americans who are listening to us, at least at the embassy,” lawmaker Charles Sitzenstuhl from Emmanuel Macron’s party said Tuesday.

LP Staff Writers

Writers at Lord’s Press come from a range of professional backgrounds, including history, diplomacy, heraldry, and public administration. Many publish anonymously or under initials—a practice that reflects the publication’s long-standing emphasis on discretion and editorial objectivity. While they bring expertise in European nobility, protocol, and archival research, their role is not to opine, but to document. Their focus remains on accuracy, historical integrity, and the preservation of events and individuals whose significance might otherwise go unrecorded.

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