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PublicationBook chapter

From Near and Afar: How Digitalization Is Shaping the Economic Geography and Conditioning Regulation.

Abstract

Kapitlet analyserar hur digitalisering förändrar den ekonomiska geografin och därmed utmanar traditionella reglerings- och skattesystem. Wernberg visar hur teknologisk utveckling stegvis omformar värdeskapande genom att minska transaktionskostnader, skapa globala marknader även för små företag och flytta produktion och energiåtgång till platser långt från användaren. Fem strukturella skiften lyfts fram: marknadsexpansion genom digital uppkoppling, växande betydelse av immateriella tillgångar och molntjänster, digitala plattformars nya konkurrenslogik, omstrukturering av arbete via AI och distansarbete samt ökade ömsesidiga beroenden mellan länder. Dessa processer gör värde och arbete allt mindre knutet till fysisk närvaro, vilket skapar växande spänningar i regelverk baserade på territoriell suveränitet. Wernberg avslutar med att digitaliseringens ackumulerade effekter sannolikt kräver betydande reformer, särskilt inom internationell beskattning.

Wernberg, J. (2025). From near and afar: How digitalization is shaping the economic geography and conditioning regulation. In Å. Hansson & J. Wernberg (Eds.), Taxation in the digital era: Economic, legal, and policy challenges (pp. 13–48). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-93365-3_2

Details

Author: Joakim Wernberg
Publication year: 2025
Published in: Palgrave Macmillan

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Taxation in the digital era: Economic, Legal, and Policy Challenges

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Abstract

This book is the result of a long-standing collaboration among tax scholars from various disciplines, all focusing on taxation and digitalization and recognizing the importance of addressing the societal challenges that digitalization poses on the tax system from several disciplines and by working closely together. The authors of this anthology take an academic approach to taxation and are deeply engaged in cross-disciplinary dialogue. There is an urgent need to produce and provide evidence-based knowledge to guide tax policy design in a time of technological advancements and fiscal and economic challenges. This need is further amplified by the increasing digitalization of economies, which demands data-driven tax policies to address complex issues such as dematerialized transactions, cross-border taxation, harmful tax competition, and compliance automation.

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The chapter analyzes how digitalization and globalization challenge states’ ability to tax income and thereby finance public welfare. As work, consumption, and value creation increasingly take place without geographical presence, the link between tax bases and national jurisdictions weakens. This applies both to multinational firms and to individuals with greater opportunities for remote work.

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Taxation in the Digital Era: Economic, Legal, and Policy Challenges

Hansson, Å., & Wernberg, J

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This open access edited volume discusses the impact of digitalization on taxation, using the Swedish welfare state model as a lens through which to examine the disruptive effect of new technologies on traditional tax models. Taking a multidisciplinary approach, it integrates perspectives from economics, law, audit, and public policy to shed light on contemporary challenges in taxation.

With Sweden as a central case study, the chapters in this book address broader concerns surrounding the impact of digital transformation on how states calculate and enforce tax, as well as the role of international coordination in reforming tax policy. The book covers many important topics such as financing public welfare, international attempts to combat issues concerning multinationals and consumption taxation, legitimacy and democratic implications, as well as how digitalization impacts firms’ and tax authorities’ tax administration. The effects of AI, automation and remote work are all considered, as well as how greater labor mobility is decreasing the emphasis on a geographical nexus for taxability and creating a need for urgent tax reform. Providing a diverse set of theoretical and policy considerations, this book will be essential reading for scholars, students and policymakers working in the spheres of tax law, the welfare state and public economics.