Amazon's UK corporate tax bill halved in 2017

Amazon revealed on Thursday that its UK corporation tax bill almost halved to £4.5m last year, down from £7.4m in 2016.

The revelation came just days after the firm posted a record profit of $2.5bn in its latest quarterly results.

In its annual financial filing to Companies House, the online retail and technology behemoth said it had almost halved its corporation tax bill in one year.

In 2016, the company received a tax credit of £1.3m from the UK authorities, and last year it paid £1.7m tax on its profits.

The cut in its tax payment came despite having increased its revenues and profits from its operations, with Amazon's UK operating profit growing to £79m up from around £26m in the previous year.

“We pay all taxes required in the UK and every country where we operate,” said an Amazon UK spokesman.

“Corporation tax is based on profits, not revenues, and our profits have remained low given retail is a highly competitive, low-margin business and our continued heavy investment.”

Amazon Services UK reported turnover as a charge to its US-based parent company, apparently for the cost of delivering products, of £1.98bn in 2017.

The company would not reveal how much it paid in total to HMRC last year, beyond what it paid through Amazon Services UK.