Corporate Resource – The European Union is reviving efforts to tax large corporations through a new levy called CORE, but the proposal faces immediate pushback from member states and uncertainty over US relations.
The European Union is quietly drafting a new tax proposal that aims to bypass the geopolitical minefield of digital levies. but the strategy is already fracturing support among its own 27 member states. Known as the Corporate Resource for Europe (CORE). the initiative seeks to raise significant revenue by shifting the burden away from tech giants and onto all large corporations with a footprint in the region.
Following the abandonment of a specific Big Tech tax in July 2025—a move designed to temper trade tensions with the Trump administration—Brussels has pivoted to this broader approach. CORE would apply to companies generating annual regional revenues of approximately $117 million (100 million Euros). Under the plan, these firms would pay a lump sum based on a sliding scale defined by their net turnover. By framing the policy as a general corporate levy rather than a digital-specific tax. officials hope to avoid the retaliatory tariffs that have previously characterized US-EU trade disputes.
The technical gamble rests on the idea that local subsidiary revenue represents only a small slice of total multinational earnings. However, the proposal faces a wall of skepticism before it even reaches American negotiators. One EU official noted that while some members fear the repercussions of a targeted digital tax. a growing number are now openly critical of CORE itself. The current consensus among those hesitant states is that the tax should be expanded to cover virtually all major firms. yet this creates a secondary domestic problem.
Critics argue that a blanket levy will inadvertently punish medium-sized European enterprises. placing them at a competitive disadvantage against global giants. In response. regulators are working to refine payment thresholds to shield these local companies. though no specific figures have been released. The EU documentation remains intentionally opaque regarding the exact levy amounts. stating only that costs will be differentiated per a company’s net turnover.
The legislative path ahead is equally daunting. CORE is a component of the Multiannual Financial Framework, a massive funding program slated to span from 2028 to 2034. Securing unanimous approval from all 27 member states is a notoriously difficult threshold. and the timeline for implementation remains tethered to a period that concludes just as the Trump administration’s term expires. While Washington has yet to comment on the new plan. the history of tariff threats against EU fines suggests that increasing the fiscal load on American companies will likely meet stiff resistance. regardless of how the tax is branded.
European Union CORE tax Big Tech trade negotiations corporate tax EU US trade Multiannual Financial Framework