Cristina Enache writes on the economics of tax policy and is the author of the Spanish Regional Tax Competitiveness Index. She was formerly the Director of Research at Civismo, an economic research organization based in Spain. She also served as head of research at Institución Futuro, a regional think tank based in Navarra in northern Spain. She is also currently Secretary-General at the World Taxpayers Associations and General Manager of the Spanish Taxpayers Union, which she joined in 2016.
Cristina has a degree in economics from the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest and a master’s degree in Economics and Finance from the University of Navarra.
The EU countries with the highest standard VAT rates are Hungary (27 percent), Croatia, Denmark, and Sweden (all at 25 percent). Luxembourg levies the lowest standard VAT rate at 16 percent, followed by Malta (18 percent), Cyprus, Germany, and Romania (all at 19 percent).
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Value-added taxes (VAT) make up approximately one-fifth of total tax revenues in Europe. However, European countries differ significantly in how efficiently they raise VAT revenues. One way to measure a country’s VAT efficiency is the VAT Gap.
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Since VAT revenues are such a significant and stable contributor to overall government revenues, EU policymakers should pay particular attention to how efficiently those revenues are raised.
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A new report shows that corporate tax rates around the world continue to level off. “We aren’t seeing a race to the bottom, we’re seeing a race toward the middle,” said Sean Bray, EU policy analyst at the Tax Foundation.
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As Chile looks to the future, the accelerated deductions for capital investment costs should be extended and made permanent while unnecessary tax hikes on individuals and capital should be avoided. Policymakers should focus on growth-oriented tax policy that encourages investment, savings, and entrepreneurial activity, increasing Chile’s international tax competitiveness.
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Since 2020, Spain has dropped from 26th to 34th on the International Tax Competitiveness due to multiple tax hikes, new taxes, and weak performances in all five index components.
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Colombia should consider shifting its planned tax reforms from harmful corporate and individual taxes to less harmful consumption taxes.
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The 2022 Spanish Regional Tax Competitiveness Index allows policymakers and taxpayers to evaluate and measure how their regions’ tax systems compare.
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It’s unlikely these implemented and proposed windfall taxes will achieve their goals of addressing high gas and energy prices and raising additional revenues. They would more likely raise prices, penalize domestic production, and punitively target certain industries without a sound tax base.
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The Japanese tax and benefit system comes with trade-offs that policymakers must keep in mind when planning to reform the tax policy.
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While the tax and benefit system can be successful in keeping low-income working households out of poverty and encouraging workforce participation, high marginal tax rates like the one observed in the case of this Australian working parent act as barriers to upward mobility.
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Canadian workers could face up to two important marginal tax rate spikes and lose 60 percent of additional earnings to the provincial health-care premium.
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Reshaping some of these policies to generate a smoother variation of marginal tax rates over different income levels would likely raise labor supply and encourage the upward mobility of workers and especially that of average-income workers.
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High marginal tax rates can act as barriers to upward mobility, discouraging people from advancing in their careers.
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Research has shown that spikes in tax rates can act as barriers to upward mobility. High marginal tax rates might directly influence the decisions workers make about accepting a raise, working additional hours, or whether they might remain on government benefits.
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Ireland and France levy the highest excise duties on cigarettes in the EU, at €8.85 ($10.47) and €6.88 ($8.13) per 20-cigarette pack, respectively.
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With this new VAT directive, the EU has invited member states to adopt policies that create new complexities, are poorly targeted, and undermine an Own Resource.
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Only three European OECD countries levy a net wealth tax, namely Norway, Spain, and Switzerland.
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Before competing in the UEFA Champions League, football clubs in Europe also compete to lure the best players.
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In recent years, EU countries have undertaken a series of tax reforms designed to maintain tax revenue levels while supporting investment and economic growth. However, not all tax reforms were created equal.
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