Indonesia tells Google and other Internet firms to pay tax or risk getting blocked

Indonesia wants greater scrutiny on the revenues of global Internet companies in the country, so it can figure out if there are taxes owed to it.

It wants to look more closely at the earnings of big ad providers like Google. Additionally, it will start requiring other foreign online-based firms to register for "permanent establishment" status in the country so it can levy taxes on them. Those who don't comply risk getting blocked.

According to Reuters, communications ministry spokesperson Ismail Cawidu pointed at Google, saying that the company has a huge user base in Indonesia, but the country may not be getting every dollar in taxes from the company's Jakarta branch because of the way digital transactions are calculated. Read more...