Is Starbucks` tax planning and practice setting a bad precedent? The following is a review on the Reuters’s report on ‘How Starbucks avoids UK taxes’: Reuters (2013). It looks at what tax avoidance and tax evasion are, and the issues affecting the ethics on Starbucks` tax planning and practice. Finally, to comment on whether Starbucks` tax planning is recommended for any other multinational company.
2. Tax Evasion or Tax Avoidance
2.1. A review about the tax planning
Tax avoidance, subject to what is said below, may be broadly described as the legitimate ordering of one’s affairs in such a way as to minimise the tax which is chargeable. The distinction between this and evasion must at the outset be clearly understood. Evasion is, for example, the deliberate submission of false returns, the omission of sales from the trading account, the inflation of claims for deduction of expenditure, etc. All of these latter may attract penalties upon assessment and are offences which are open to prosecution. The ordering of one’s affairs, referred to above, is permissible unless it falls within the terms of the specific anti-avoidance sections.
In my opinion the Starbucks scenario, transfer pricing and tax avoidance feature prominently as opposed to tax evasion. This is because Starbucks may have undertaken an intentional plan to transfer profits from the UK to offshore countries in the case the Netherlands which is a lower tax regime to that of the UK.
2.2. Intentional or not?
In other cases it may be that is it is an intentional plan to either minimise tax or to shift profits offshore by multinational companies. The techniques used to minimise the payments are primarily;
Tax Planning
Tax Avoidance
Tax Evasion
As with any tax plannin...
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...nd ethics when doing business. I realised that it is morally wrong and unfair that these large corporations are motivated by profit at the expense of social responsibility and cited my home country of Zimbabwe as an example of how these companies are exploiting less developing nations through profit shifting.
Having analysed all information and journals, my opinion is that Starbucks is practising tax planning as a management tool. Cutting costs is important and tax is one of the biggest costs. Often multinationals see themselves as one group and that, these companies operate in different countries but their bottom line is profit. My final diagnoses would be, if uncurbed and unchecked tax planning will have a detrimental effect on many economies globally, thus the raise of economic groupings such as the OECD which police the ethics and conduct of these corporations.
This strategic capitalises on weaknesses since will decrease the cost of coffee beans/beverages but also Starbucks operating cost which they regularly ship across the world to various stores. Starbucks can capitalise on this weakness to improve their brand options. It adds value in the inbound logistics activities, operations and procurements. Starbucks should consider this option since it will decrease their operating cost and therefore will reduce the prices on their menu. The attractiveness is the exact same as mentioned in option 1.
There are 3 types of corporate income taxes as follows: National 30% of taxable income, Local 20.7% of National Tax, and Enterprise 10.08% of taxable income. The calculated effective tax rate of 42.05% although they simply add up to 46.29% (30.0% + 30.0%X20.7% + 10.08%). It is because Enterprise tax is deductible for the other tax purposes only when it becomes due. Tax evasion involves fraudulent or criminal behavior, conduct involving deception, concealment, or destruction of records. Tax evasion occurs when the taxpayer fraudulently or criminally avoids the payment of taxes otherwise due and owing under the tax laws. There are many tax crimes under the Internal Revenue Code. The criminal violations cover the same territory as the civil fraud penalties, although the government has a higher burden of proof in the criminal cases. The criminal cases, however, reach a far greater spectrum of potential defendants. Unlike the civil penalties which target only the taxpayer, the criminal penalties reach anyone engaging in the defined offense, including employees, accountants, lawyers and tax preparers. Under IRC Sec. 7206(2), a person is guil...
The term “ethical business” is seen, by many people, as an oxymoron. This is because a business’s main objective is to make as much money as possible. Making the most money possible, however, can often lead to unethical actions. Companies like Enron, WorldCom, and Satyam have been the posterchildren for how corporations’ greed lead to unethical practices. In recent times however, companies have been accused of being unethical based on, not how they manage their finances, but on how they treat the society that they operate in. People have started to realize that the damage companies have been doing to the world around them is more impactful and far worse than any financial fraud that these companies might be engaging in. Events like the BP oil
Starbucks takes the standards of business conduct very seriously. Starbucks “support(s) the global business ethics policy and provide(s) an overview of some of the legal and ethical standards” (Starbucks Coffee) around the world and in every store they serve their customers. Another important factor is that Sta...
Corporations have been moving to foreign countries for decades. Bermuda claims to be the first tax haven due to legislation passed in 1935 permitting offshore companies, however this claim to fame is debatable due to the similar legislation passed by Lichtenstein in 1926 to attract offshore capital. Switzerland also became a prominent tax haven after World War One. While other European countries had to raise their taxes to help pay off war debt, Switzerland, having been neutral in the war, had an influx of business. Originally tax havens were used to avoid personal taxation, but starting in the 1950’s companies have been moving to them because of new jurisdiction.
Starbucks Corp, a US based company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, has more than 19,000 stores in 62 countries. Although most of its business activities are conducted in the US, it management must understand the differences of reporting practices around the world that are used for accounting practices. Some of the common factors that affect financial reporting that can cause companies to fail are: legal system, taxation, inflation, and political and economic ties.
...healthy environment, economy, or political state is left up to those who buy and distribute coffee. While the model that Starbucks follows to come by and sell their coffee may not be perfect it is at least a step in the right direction.
As mention earlier Starbucks has many opportunities of which it can take advantage. These include a joint venture with McDonald’s, where the restaurant giant would supply its customers with Starbucks coffee. Another is the bottled Frappuccino product that Pepsi and Starbucks have created. This has had a very positive response in the test markets and posses to be a lucrative option. Starbucks could also look at the vertical integration possibility of producing its own beans. This could prove to be very successful if they can capture a significant amount of the production they could become a price setter in the coffee commodities. Also because small coffee retail outlets are so trendy it is possible for them to set ...
Mr. Donald states that one of the main goals of Starbucks is to expose the world to the coffee production/industry in Africa by showcasing African coffee name brands. However, there is evidence that points to the real goal that goal, simply put, is greed. The article "Starbucks Seeks The Right Blend of Global Ambition And Ethical Trade", written by Robin Pagnamenta, of the Times Online, in my opinion would be a goal oriented based theory.
Moving on, Starbucks Corporation proves that consumers can trust them because one of the main goals of the company is ethical service, their goal is to serve the customers with less than three minutes. The author said, “Starbucks’ “Just Say Yes” policy empowered partners to provide the best service possible, even if it required going beyond company rules” (Moon). Having this policy shows that the company tries to make customers satisfied. Also, it is ethical to have this policy because service is a key that makes the company successful. For example, if the customer spilled a drink, he/she can ask for another one. Additionally, if a customer does not have cash or credit and wants to pay by check, he/she will get a simple drink for
Business was good, but it was not without its problems. There was the political upheaval in the Middle East, followed by further tension after then CEO Howard Schultz commented on growing anti-Semitism in the region. Their integrity came under fire when certain Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO's) accused them of purchasing coffee beans under questionable social and economic conditions. These situations, together with difficult economic times globally, meant that Starbucks was likely going to take a hit somewhere. Eventually, they shut down their Israeli operations altogether.
According to Investopedia website, “a technique that reduces risk by allocating investments among various financial instruments, industries and other categories is known as diversification. Diversification is the most important component of reaching long-term financial goals while minimizing risk” (“Investopedia”, 2011). “Fundamentally, this strategy is about creating new products with new product life cycles and making existing ones obsolete” (Olsen, n.d.). With diversification, Starbucks would be able to enter new markets with new products. By having a diversification strategy enforced, this will create a path for effective growth for the business. As with any company considering new products in new markets, there are risks associated with it and Starbucks would need to be prepared to respond accordingly.
Kidder, R, M., (2010), Center for corporate Ethics, Institute for Global Ethics, retrieved on August 08,2010 from www.globalethics.org/ reserve reading from ethics news line
Starbucks has identified high value opportunity in China, India, Brazil and Japan. The large expansion opportunity of twelve billion in China alone is enough to drive Starbucks to expand globally. The organization has planned to double its footprint to 3000 stores in China by 2019 ("Starbucks Details Five-Year Plan to Accelerate Profitable Growth", 2014). Starbucks realizes that eventually there will be a diminishing return on their existing market within the US due to market maturity and there are only two ways to expand through diversification in their offerings and entering new markets. Given the international opportunity for growth and expansive tea market in Asia, the company will enjoy the benefits of the growth opportunity. Management’s decision to continue to grow globally is a driving force that has yielded
It seems obvious that large corporations have a tendency to ignore the negative effects of their actions in favor of profit. This example, although sensationalized, still says to me that with power comes responsibility. It affirmed my belief that a corporation’s goal cannot be just to provide profit to shareholders, but there must also be an element of social responsibility.