The US is advancing new tax measures targeting countries with “unfair” tax regimes, threatening UK service exports and global tax cooperation under OECD’s Pillar 2, says Tim Sarson

Just a couple of weeks ago, tariffs were dominating the news agenda. Now they seem to have disappeared from the front pages as rapidly as the financial markets shrugged off fears of a global trade war. Besides, Britain doesn’t export much to the US, except a few cars and some jet engines, and those got what they needed from this month’s trade agreement. Good news all around, right?

Think again. A less heralded but potentially no less worrying set of tax proposals is now making its way through the US legislature. Proposals that, if they come to pass and nothing changes here, could strike at the heart of our services-led export economy, throwing a cocktail of punitive taxes at companies based in countries with features in their tax regimes the US administration isn’t fond of.

US taxation is complicated. It’s written in a language only US tax experts can understand, dotted with obscure section numbers and usually dressed in a floridly descriptive moniker. This one is part of something called the “One Big Beautiful Bill”. I learned my trade in the UK tax system and this terminology is as exotic to me as it is to you. So don’t expect a comprehensive technical analysis of the bill. Instead, read on for a lay person’s summary.

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