Prosecutors in Milan, Italy, have requested a criminal trial against the European unit of retail giant Amazon and several of its executives, accusing them of tax evasion amounting to approximately 1.2 billion euros (about 1.37 billion U.S. dollars), multiple foreign media outlets reported Thursday.
According to reports, Italian prosecutors alleged that between 2019 and 2021, Amazon failed to provide -- or only partially provided -- the required data on non-EU sellers and imported goods on its platform. This is believed to have misled the Italian tax agency and allowed the company to evade its obligations to pay value-added tax (VAT).
The Milan prosecutors' request for a trial is still pending approval from the Milan court's preliminary judge.
In response, Amazon said on Thursday that it will contest the allegations, emphasizing that it ranks among Italy's top 50 taxpayers. The company cautioned that unstable regulations and lengthy judicial processes would harm Italy's business environment, while affirming its commitment to fulfilling its tax obligations.
Under Italian law, e-commerce platforms have been responsible for payment of VAT on sales made by non-EU sellers in Italy since 2019. The relevant EU regulations were officially implemented in 2021.
Italian prosecutors request criminal trial against Amazon over tax evasion
