Google’s headquarters in Paris were raided by French tax officials and law enforcement on Tuesday morning as part of an investigation over alleged tax fraud. The news was first reported by French outlet Le Parisien and then later confirmed to Reuters by sources who claim the raid began at 5:00AM local time.
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In an update to the story, added shortly after the report was published, a French prosecutor explains that the raid “aims to verify whether Google Ireland has failed in fiscal obligations in France.” Google’s current tax structure allows it to pay taxes in Ireland even when sales appear to be coming from the UK.
As Reuters notes, France isn’t the only country with significant concerns about the way Google conducts its business. Britain has also complained about Google’s penchant for having its tax base in countries where it can pay lower corporate taxes.
The financial prosecutor’s office also mentioned allegations of money laundering in a statement to the press, but there aren’t many details to work with at the moment.
