Behind its success, it turns out that RockStar hasn't paid taxes in years

Grand Theft Auto developer Rockstar Games has faced strong criticism for not paying corporate taxes in the UK for 10 years. The company, headquartered in Edinburgh, Scotland, has also received tens of millions of dollars in tax breaks from the British government.

The Think Tank investigative agency Tax Watch UK revealed that between 2009 and 2021, Rockstar Games had not paid corporate taxes in the UK. This is despite the fact that Rockstar made $5 billion in operating profit between 2013 and 2021 with Grand Theft Auto V, released in 2013, being the most profitable entertainment product of all time.

GTA V made $800 million in the first 24 hours of sales and continues to make money through selling microtransactions for Grand Theft Auto Online’s multiplayer mode. Rockstar also profited heavily from the release of Red Dead Redemption 2, a game that sold 17 million copies in just over a month and quickly outperformed its predecessor, Red Dead Redemption.

The Think Tank Institute explained that not only did Rockstar Games not pay corporate taxes, but it also received £42 million in tax relief, which equates to $51 million. Rockstar North, which developed GTA 5, received these tax credits between 2013 and 2021 and account for about 19% of all tax credits granted to the gaming industry in the UK.

Until now, there has been no official comment from RockStar regarding this news.