Palantir paid just £2m in UK corporation tax in 2024, despite securing lucrative public sector contracts worth hundreds of millions. It reported profits of over £25m, giving an effective UK tax rate of just over 8%, far below the statutory 25%.

Shares jumped 17% after chief executive Alex Karp forecast worldwide revenues would nearly double to $8bn, which he called 'otherworldly'. The Cictar report showed an effective global tax rate of 1.4%, with zero US federal tax last year and only $2.5m in state taxes. This low rate highlights how the company shifts profits to its US parent.

Trade union Unison condemned the tax, saying firms that shirk tax on an industrial scale must pay their due and that ministers should not award public service contracts to companies draining the Treasury. Palantir earned £247m in the UK but filed only £159m, using transfer pricing to move profits abroad, and holds an estimated £670m in government contracts.

Palantir cuts its tax bill by granting share options, shifting liability to employees, and holding billions in US tax credits and loss carryforwards that may wipe out US federal tax for nearly a decade. It also benefits from Trump‑era corporate tax cuts and a carve‑out from the global minimum tax, and a spokesperson said it complies with all regimes.