President Donald Trump on Friday threatened a 100 percent tax on sales from any country that imposes a tax on digital services from United States companies.
In a post on social media, Trump targeted European countries that he said were discussing the “imminent” implementation of tariffs on American companies. The US president has repeatedly tried to use tariffs as a way to prevent such taxes, but many countries are looking for revenue as their economies continue to operate in digital environments dominated by American companies.
“I request this statement to represent that any country that imposes such a tariff will be immediately met with a 100 percent TARIFF on any Goods exported to the United States of America,” Trump wrote.
He added that the new tariffs would replace any previously negotiated trade agreements. Trump said the fine would apply to any country that moves forward with such a tax, but singled out European countries instead.
The move could lead to a major trade deal that could raise prices and hamper economic growth, potentially triggering a major trade war if the 27-member European Union is forced to retaliate.
Get the latest country news
Get the best Canadian news delivered to your inbox as it happens so you never miss a trending story.
“The joint measures targeting these legal policies are unjustified. If followed, the EU will respond quickly and clearly to protect its rights and regulatory independence,” said Olof Gill, spokesman for the European Commission on Friday.
He defended the tax on tech companies as “non-discriminatory” and applied equally to “all large companies, regardless of where they come from.”
Trump has been opposed to foreign efforts to tax or regulate American tycoons. Last year, he threatened new taxes on any country that moved to do so. Last August’s post said digital taxes and regulations “are all designed to harm, or discriminate against, American Technology.”
The threat comes ahead of Trump’s July 4 deadline for the European Union and the United States to begin implementing a tariff agreement that cuts tariffs on most EU exports by 15 percent.
The European Union in May finalized a trade deal with the United States that imposes a 15 percent tariff on EU exports. The deal followed months of debate within the EU after European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen intervened last year during a visit to Trump’s golf course in Scotland.
Digital taxes were not part of the deal and remain a sticking point between the US and the European bloc.
The US government has conducted a tariff investigation into digital services taxes under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. But it was unclear how Trump would carry out his threat and whether he would apply the tariffs broadly or initially target specific nations.
Britain, which is no longer part of the EU, has from 2020 levied a digital services tax of 2 per cent on revenue from search engines, social networking sites and online marketplaces that “get value” from UK users.
The British government said in a policy document at the time that corporate tax rules for digital businesses “led to a misalignment between where profits are taxed and where value is created.”
UK tax is cross-border, so large multinational companies will pay it. The tax is designed to “ensure that large multinational corporations contribute appropriately to support essential public services,” the document said.
© 2026 The Canadian Press
