France’s National Assembly has voted to impose a €0.055 tax on every gigabyte of data sent to French internet users, as part of an amendment to the 2027 budget. The Socialist authors estimate the measure could bring in €10bn annually. The amendment passed narrowly, with 11 votes in favour, 10 against and 14 abstentions. Both the government and the finance committee opposed the proposal, which must still pass further stages in the budget process to become law.
If enacted, internet providers would track data sent to users and report the totals to tax authorities quarterly, under the supervision of telecoms regulator Arcep. The tax would be capped at 15% of a company’s French revenue or 2% of global revenue. Content delivered via networks that store data locally would also be taxed as it leaves those networks. The amendment forbids tracking the content or destination of the data.
Industry reaction has been critical. VideoLAN, the nonprofit behind VLC, said the tax could cost it over €1m a year. The Senate, controlled by conservatives, is expected to oppose the measure, and the government could remove it from the final budget.
The proposal comes as France already taxes digital services and supports EU action against large tech companies. The outcome of the budget process will decide whether the tax is implemented.
