According to the data available to the news portal, Google and Facebook are selling their services in Lithuania via Ireland-registered subsidiaries Google Ireland Limited and Facebook Ireland Limited, which issue invoices to entities buying advertising services in Lithuania. The precise revenue generated by those companies from Lithuania is not disclosed.
Vasaris Orzekauskas, CEO of media planning and buying agency Inspired UM, admits being unaware how much money might be outflowing to those companies.
"It might be assumed that foreign channels might be generating approximately 15 million euros in annual revenue from Lithuania," he estimated, adding that this amount should continue growing in the future.
According to the data made available to the news portal by the State Tax Inspectorate (VMI), Google Voice Inc paid 1,000 euros in value-added tax (VAT) to Lithuania between January and September 2015. Google Technology Inc. paid 99,100 euros, Facebook Payments International Limited – 98,000 euros and Linkedin Ireland – 12,300 euros. The VMI has no tax information about Google-owned video-hosting platform YouTube.
Neither Google's nor Facebook's companies pay any profit tax in Lithuania as they do not have a registered office in the country and therefore are exempt from this obligation.
