Digitaalsemaks

Digitaalsemaks is a term used in Estonian-language policy discussions to describe a proposed digital tax framework that bases tax liability on digital transactions and data-driven economic activity. The word combines digitaalse (genitive form of digitaalne, digital) and maks (tax), and is used primarily in theoretical or policy debates about how to tax online platforms and data services.

Design principles would include using data from online platforms, marketplaces, and ad networks to identify taxable events, applying a consumption- or revenue-based base, and coordinating across jurisdictions to prevent double taxation. Privacy and data-security safeguards would be essential, and small businesses might receive gradual phasing or exemptions to limit administrative burdens.

Historically, digitaalsemaks is not implemented as a widely adopted regime. It appears in policy literature as a hypothetical model or exploratory concept influenced by debates over digital services taxes (DSTs) and OECD BEPS reforms aimed at taxing value created in the digital economy.

Potential advantages include improved capture of revenue from online activity, broader tax bases, and alignment with how modern platforms generate value. Critics warn of privacy risks, data quality concerns, potential double taxation, and the administrative cost of implementing real-time digital reporting.

See also: Digital Services Tax; OECD BEPS; Platform economy taxation.