US President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to impose \u2018big tariffs\u2019 on the United Kingdom if the country does not drop the Digital Service Tax (DST).<\/p>\n
US President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to impose \u201cbig tariffs\u201d on the United Kingdom if the country does not drop the Digital Service Tax (DST). While speaking to The Telegraph, Trump said that he would \u201cput a big tariff on the UK\u201d if it did not drop its tax.<\/p>\n
He maintained that the tax unfairly targets US tech companies, after the Treasury revealed it had collected millions last year. \u201cI don\u2019t like it when they target American companies, because basically, you\u2019re talking about our great American companies, whether we like those companies that don\u2019t like them, they\u2019re American companies and the top companies in the world,\u201d Trump told the British news outlet.<\/p>\n
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\u201cWe\u2019ve been looking at it, and we can meet that very easily by just putting a big tariff on the UK. So they\u2019d better be careful. If they don\u2019t drop the tax, we\u2019ll probably put a big tariff on the UK,\u201d he said. The American leader viewed the tax as an unfair targeting of American companies such as Apple, Google and Meta by placing a 2 per cent charge on revenue on social media, search engines and online marketplaces.<\/p>\n
Interestingly, Trump\u2019s warning came right ahead of King Charles III and Queen Camilla\u2019s visit to the US next week. On Wednesday, Trump said that the monarch could \u201cabsolutely\u201d repair the special relationship between the two countries, which has become strained in recent months.<\/p>\n
Why it matters<\/p>\n
It is pertinent to note that the Digital Service Tax (DST) also applies to the UK revenues of large search engines, online marketplaces and social networks and has become increasingly important to the Exchequer amid the growth of big tech companies.<\/p>\n
Official forecasts suggest that the taxes could raise \u00a31.4 billion a year by 2030, up from \u00a3380 million when first introduced four years ago. On Thursday, the UK\u2019s HM Revenue and Customs published its annual tax receipts for 2025-26, including the total amount made payable to DST, which totalled $1.3 billion.<\/p>\n
It represents an increase of 17 per cent from the \u00a3808m (around $1.1bn) reported in 2024-25 and nearly 10 per cent more than the $866m raised by the digital services tax in France in 2024. Hence, the figures suggest that the UK DST appears to remain the largest in the world.<\/p>\n
When asked what kind of tariffs the United Kingdom can expect, Trump said: \u201cMore than what they\u2019re getting.\u201d Refusing to drop the tax, which is a key revenue driver for the Treasury, could further sour UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer\u2019s relationship with the president.<\/p>\n
Trump is ready for the King\u2019s visit<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the American president noted ahead of King\u2019s visit on Monday that the occasion could help improve the ties between the two nations. \u201cI know him well, I\u2019ve known him for years,\u201d Trump said during a phone interview with the BBC before the King\u2019s four-day state visit, which begins on Monday. \u201cHe\u2019s a brave man, and he\u2019s a great man.\u201d<\/p>\n
The president, however, appeared to be more muted when discussing Starmer, saying the Prime Minister could only \u201crecover\u201d if he changed course on immigration. \u201cIf he opened the North Sea and if his immigration policies became strong, which right now they\u2019re not, he can recover, but if he doesn\u2019t, I don\u2019t think he has a chance,\u201d Trump said.<\/p>\n
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It is pertinent to note that the US officials have long complained about the tax, which they view as unfairly targeting American tech companies. Apart from this, they also see the Online Safety Act 2023 as a threat to free speech. Back in November, Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor, resisted pressure from Washington to drop it entirely. Hence, it would be interesting to see how the UK would react this time around.<\/p>\n
First Published:
\nApril 24, 2026, 06:29 IST<\/p>\n
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