Five hundred largest US companies hold more than $ 2.1 trillion accumulated profits outside the country to avoid US taxation and, in the aggregate, would have to pay the United States about $ 620 billion in taxes, if these would return the money to their homeland, according to a study conducted by two nonprofit groups.
The study found that nearly three-quarters of the companies included in the list of the largest US companies by gross revenue, Fortune 500, have subsidiaries in countries with low taxes as Bermuda, Ireland, Luxembourg and Netherlands.
For this data, Center of fair taxation and Educational Found of the Consumer Protection used their own financial documents of these companies submitted to the Commission on Securities and Exchange Commission.
Apple holds overseas $ 181.1 billion, more than any other American company. It should give the state $ 59.2 billion in taxes if it would attempt to return the money to the United States from the three countries with low taxes, the study found.
The General Electric conglomerate (NYSE: GE) has distributed $ 119 billion in 18 countries with low taxation, Microsoft holds $ 108.3 billion in five countries, and the pharmaceutical company Pfizer holds $ 74 billion in 151 subsidiary companies. "At least 358 companies, nearly 72 % of the Fortune 500, operated subsidiaries in jurisdictions with low taxation at the end of 2014 - according to the study. - All these 358 companies have a total of at least 7622 subsidiaries in offshore zones. "
Fortune 500 companies hold more than $ 2.1 trillion in accumulated profits offshore, with 30 companies accounting for $ 1.4 trillion of this sum, which is 65 %.
Fifty-seven companies reported that they would pay a total of $ 184.4 billion of additional taxes in the United States if their profits would not be hold abroad. Their financial records indicate that they pay overseas taxes of around 6 %, whereas in the US corporate tax rate is 35 %.
"The Congress can and must take decisive actions preventing corporations use low-tax countries, which in turn would restore the basic fairness of the tax system, reduce the deficit and improve the operation of the market" - the authors conclude.