Palantir Paid Just £2m in UK Corporation Tax in 2024 Despite Billions in Public Sector Deals

US data and software giant Palantir paid only £2.1 million in UK corporation tax in 2024, despite holding lucrative public sector contracts valued in the hundreds of millions, according to a recent report.

The company, known for supplying AI-driven analytics software to major public entities including the NHS and the Ministry of Defence (MoD), has experienced explosive commercial growth. Chief Executive Alex Karp recently projected global annual revenue to approach $8 billion (£5.95 billion), describing the performance as “otherworldly.”

However, research released by the Centre for International Corporate Tax Accountability and Research (Cictar) indicates that Palantir’s global effective tax rate stands at just 1.4%. In the United States, the firm paid zero federal income tax last year alongside slightly over $2.5 million in state taxes.

Andrea Egan, general secretary of the Unison trade union—which commissioned the study—criticized the current framework:

“Systems that enable tax to be shirked on an industrial scale clearly have to change. The likes of Palantir need to stump up what’s due. Tech giants raking off billions in profit shouldn’t be free to pay what they please. Ministers shouldn’t award contracts to run public services to firms that are starving them of cash.”

UK Market Revenue vs. Tax Paid

The United Kingdom represents Palantir’s primary market outside North America, employing roughly 750 staff locally and declaring £247 million in UK revenues for 2024. By 2026, the company’s portfolio of UK government contracts reached an estimated £670 million—including a notable £240 million three-year contract with the MoD awarded without a competitive tender.

Despite declaring local UK profits exceeding £25 million in 2024, Palantir’s UK tax liability amounted to just £2.1 million—an effective rate of just over 8%, well below the standard 25% statutory rate. The report noted that UK tax contributions were lower than those paid in countries like France, Germany, Japan, and South Korea.

Revenue Shifting and Accounting Structure

Researchers highlighted disparities in how international revenues are booked. While 26% of Palantir’s total revenue comes from clients outside the US, only 4% of total revenue is officially registered in overseas subsidiaries.

According to Cictar, this structure suggests that international customer contracts are routed through Palantir’s US entities, which then pay operational service fees to local subsidiaries. In 2024, Palantir recorded £159 million in revenue in its UK statutory accounts while reporting £247 million of UK-derived revenue in its US SEC stock market filings.

Source / Reference: The Guardian