Companies Hope to Beat a New Tax Called the BEAT

Part of the tax-code revamp, the measure will hit corporations with extensive payments to foreign affiliates

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WASHINGTON—Multinational companies are trying to beat a new tax called the BEAT.

The BEAT is the Base Erosion and Anti-Abuse Tax, a complex minimum tax meant to prevent the world’s biggest corporations from shifting profits from the U.S. to other countries. Turned from idea into law last year as part of the tax-code revamp, the BEAT is now frustrating corporate executives and spurring fresh tax-avoidance strategies.

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