Celebrity-obsessed UK newspaper the Guardian has wheeled out its big-hitting serious journalists today for an expose of tax avoidance and ‘offshoring’. In some potentially morally dubious (but likely entirely legal) tax-related cleverness it seems AstraZeneca and GlaxoSmithKline have shifted the ownership of some of their trademarks to low-tax countries.

“This means they can reduce their UK-based profits and hence their British tax bills by paying royalties to the subsidiary in the tax haven for use of the trademarks,” says the paper.

GlaxoSmithKline moved the ownership of over 40 trademarks to Puerto Rico, including its big-selling Avandia diabetes drug. AstraZeneca has also moved rights to drugs such as Crestor to Puerto Rico.

The companies deny doing anything wrong, with Helen Jones, GSK’s head of tax, telling the Guardian, “It is a widespread and totally accepted practice for global companies to license out intellectual property in return for royalties which reflect the value of work carried out by the holder.”

Image: Puerto Rico / by scudsone via flickr under creative commons