Airbnb should come clean on Australian revenue
Regarding last week’s public hearing as part of the Senate Economics Committee inquiry into corporate tax avoidance, a statement has been released from CEO of the Accommodation Association of Australia Richard Munro:
“Despite repeated public questioning, Airbnb is continuing to refuse to disclose the amount of tax it pays in Australia.
“This is despite Airbnb saying it has more than 50,000 listings in Australia and each individual listing, on average, generates $7100 of revenue on an annual basis.
“This means Airbnb is generating in excess of $350 million in Australia each year and it appears most of this is being funnelled back to a parent company which is based in Ireland.
“If this is true, these are hardly the actions of a good corporate citizen.
“Airbnb said at the hearing that it only takes 3 per cent of revenue per ‘room’, but on its website it states: ‘we charge a 6-12 per cent guest service fee every time a reservation is booked’ (https://www.airbnb.com.au/help/article/104/what-are-guest-service-fees).
“The accommodation industry is calling on Airbnb to clarify which figure is correct.
“It’s disappointing that platforms like Airbnb appear to be avoiding paying tax in Australia and are, therefore, free-riding on the tourism industry.
“Through our submission and attendance at the public hearing, the Accommodation Association is continuing to actively participate in this important inquiry on behalf of Australia’s tourism accommodation industry.”
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