On March 26, 2021, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) posted an advance copy of a Federal Register notice terminating, as of March 26, 2021, the Section 301 investigations of Digital Services Taxes (DSTs) under consideration by Brazil, the Czech Republic, the European Union, and Indonesia because these jurisdictions either have not adopted or not implemented a DST during the period of investigation.
As of March 25, 2021, Brazil, the Czech Republic, and the European Union have not adopted DSTs, and Indonesia has not implemented a DST. Under the Section 301 statute, determinations must be made within one year of initiation, or in this case by June 2, 2021. Even if one or more of these jurisdictions were to adopt or implement a DST prior to June 2, USTR would not have sufficient time to determine whether the DST was actionable under Section 301 and, if so, what action, if any, to take to obtain the elimination of the measure. Accordingly, the USTR has determined that it is appropriate to terminate these investigations at this time. USTR will continue to monitor the status of any proposed or adopted DST in these four jurisdictions, and may, if appropriate, initiate one or more new Section 301 investigations.
