---
title: "UK to face ‘big tariff’ if it doesn’t drop tech tax, Trump says"
description: "WASHINGTON, April 23 (Reuters) - US President Donald Trump said the United States will retaliate with a \"big tariff\" if Britain continues to target companies like Apple, Alphabet's Google and Meta with its technology tax."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "World"
author: "Reuters"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/reuters/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-04-24-uk-to-face-big-tariff-if-it-doesnt-drop-tech-tax-trump-says/"
published: "2026-04-24T04:50:25"
updated: "2026-04-24T05:36:13"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 98
---

# UK to face ‘big tariff’ if it doesn’t drop tech tax, Trump says

> WASHINGTON, April 23 (Reuters) - US President Donald Trump said the United States will retaliate with a "big tariff" if Britain continues to target companies like Apple, Alphabet's Google and Meta with its technology tax.

By Reuters · Published 24 April 2026, 06:50 SAST · Updated 24 April 2026, 07:36 SAST

## Content

The United Kingdom rolled out its 2% digital services tax in 2020, a move that has been criticized by Trump and his predecessor Democrat Joe Biden.

"If they don’t drop the tax, we’ll probably put a big tariff on the UK," the president told reporters during a White House event.

His comments come ahead of a [visit](https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL8N40X19J&linkedFromStory=true) by Britain's head of state, King Charles, next week.

Trump said he believes the monarch could help repair the Washington's relationship with the British, which has become strained in recent months.

(Reporting by Jasper Ward in Washington; Editing by Chris Sanders)