International Tax Law Simplification

The jobs of many U.S. workers residing both inside and outside the United States are tied to the exports and foreign investments of U.S. businesses. Job growth is becoming increasingly dependent on expanded, competitive, and strong foreign trade. Our tax code restrains U.S. businesses from competing effectively abroad, which in turn restrains economic growth at home.

 

The tax rules that govern exports and the foreign investments and operations of U.S.-based multinational corporations are in need of revision. They represent a patchwork of extremely complex rules without an overall policy or purpose, and they impose barriers on U.S. companies seeking to compete in world markets. For U.S. businesses to be competitive in the expanding global market, our foreign tax rules must be simplified and made job- and business-friendly.

 

 

The U.S. Chamber has been actively opposing legislative attacks on U.S. multinational corporations that “invert” (reincorporate their foreign operations in foreign countries), in an attempt to create a level playing field with foreign multinational corporations. These attacks typically come in the form of tax legislation to penalize or inhibit the use of inversion or in nontax legislation to exclude inverted companies or related entities from participating in federal contracts. The Chamber advocates a long-overdue legislative overhaul of the U.S. tax code’s antiquated and Byzantine foreign tax provisions, which prevent U.S. corporations from competing fairly with their foreign counterparts.