The United States Trade Representative (USTR) on March 26 published updates to digital service tax (DST) investigations regarding Austria, India, Italy, Spain, Turkey, the UK, Brazil, the Czech Republic, the EU, and Indonesia. The USTR has terminated its investigations regarding Brazil, the Czech Republic, the EU, and Indonesia because those jurisdictions either have not adopted or not implemented a DST during the period of investigation. For the other countries, the investigatory process is continuing, and the USTR has proposed a list of goods for potential tariffs.
The March 26 notices indicate that the possibility of enforcement tariffs remains despite the change in administration. They further indicate how actions taken by the previous administration have paved the way for the current and future administrations to use these measures. Companies should remain aware that actions taken by other countries that affect companies doing business in the United States could lead to the imposition of US tariffs on goods from such other countries.
