Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on December 17, 2024
MILAN (Reuters) - Italy's tax police on Tuesday searched the headquarters of nine courier companies for alleged false invoices benefiting ecommerce and logistics giants Amazon, SDA and GLS, according to a search order reviewed by Reuters.
Prosecutors in the northwestern city of Turin are investigating Amazon Italia Transport and Amazon City Logistica, Italian units of Amazon, SDA Express Courier and General Logistics System Enterprise (GLS) for alleged tax fraud and illegal labour practices, according to the 23-page order.
SDA is part of Poste Italiane, while GLS is a subsidiary of British group International Distribution Services.
Poste declined to comment. Amazon had no immediate comment when reached by Reuters. GLS did not reply to an e-mailed request for comment from Reuters.
The two Italian units of Amazon are under investigation for allegedly having evaded more than 10 million euros ($10.5 million) from 2019 to 2022 and using "fake procurement contracts instead of labour contracts".
SDA is under probe for the same allegations, covering 23 million euros of VAT allegedly evaded from 2019 to 2023, and for GLS, for approximately 10 million euros from 2020 to 2023, according to the search order.
The investigation alleges that the Italian units of Amazon, SDA and GLS circumvented labour and tax laws, relying on limited liability companies that supplied workers while omitting VAT tax duties and reducing social security payments.
Amazon Italia Transport is also at the centre of two other investigations carried out by the Milan Public Prosecutor's Office over tax evasion. In July, the Guardia di Finanza police had seized 121 million euros from Amazon Italia Transport.
Amazon in July said it had adhered to the necessary rules.
Similar investigations have targeted other large businesses in recent years including global delivery groups DHL and UPS, German logistics firm DB Schenker and Italian supermarket chain Esselunga, Milan prosecutors had said in a statement.
($1 = 0.9521 euros)
(Reporting by Emilio Parodi ad Elvira Pollina; editing by Keith Weir, Hugh Lawson and Leslie Adler)
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