President Donald Trump has directed his trade chief to renew investigations aimed at imposing tariffs on imports from countries that levy digital service taxes (DSTs) on U.S. technology firms.

A White House official stated that the administration is considering tariffs and other measures to counter foreign digital taxes, which they claim unfairly target American companies. "President Trump will not allow foreign governments to appropriate America's tax base for their own benefit," the official said.

The directive instructs the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) to resume investigations into digital service taxes that were first launched during Trump's initial term. It also calls for examining additional countries that impose similar levies "to discriminate against U.S. companies," according to a White House fact sheet.

Countries such as Britain, France, Italy, Spain, Turkey, India, Austria, and Canada have imposed digital service taxes on revenue generated by major U.S. tech firms including Google, Meta, Apple, and Amazon. These taxes have been a longstanding point of contention between the U.S. and its trading partners.

During his first term, Trump’s administration used Section 301 of the Trade Act to investigate and determine that several of these nations discriminated against U.S. companies, opening the door for retaliatory tariffs. "What they’re doing to us in other countries is terrible with digital," Trump told reporters before signing the memo.

Last week, Trump previewed his intention to impose tariffs on goods from Canada and France in response to their digital service taxes. The White House noted that each of these nations collects over $500 million annually in DST revenues, with global digital tax revenues surpassing $2 billion.

Trump’s directive also calls for a review of European Union and British policies that may "incentivize U.S. companies to develop or use products and technology in ways that undermine free speech or foster censorship." The administration will closely examine the EU’s Digital Markets Act and Digital Services Act for potential impacts on American firms.

Meanwhile, sources told Reuters that Google could face charges under the EU’s Digital Markets Act after failing to satisfy regulators with proposed search result changes.

This latest move signals a shift back to aggressive trade enforcement after the Biden administration had paused Trump-era digital tax tariffs in favor of global tax negotiations. Those discussions led to a 15% global corporate minimum tax, which the U.S. Congress never ratified, and talks on replacing digital taxes have since stalled.

On his first day back in office, Trump effectively withdrew the U.S. from the global tax arrangement, declaring the 15% global minimum tax "has no force or effect in the United States" and directing the Treasury to develop protective measures.

Trump has not yet disclosed the tariff rates or the specific value of targeted goods. In 2021, USTR announced 25% tariffs on over $2 billion in imports from several countries but suspended them to allow further negotiations. Those proposed tariffs included $887 million in British goods, $386 million from Italy, and hundreds of millions more from Spain, Turkey, India, and Austria.

As the debate over digital service taxes continues, Trump's move signals a renewed push to defend American tech firms from what his administration sees as discriminatory foreign policies.

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