Tax Subsidies for R&D Spending and Patent Boxes in OECD Countries
Despite the coronavirus pandemic’s immense health and economic challenges, the crisis has also revealed the incredible value of innovation.
32 min read
Expert
Daniel Bunn
President and CEO
Daniel Bunn is President and CEO of the Tax Foundation. Daniel has been with the organization since 2018 and, prior to becoming President, successfully built its Center for Global Tax Policy, expanding the Tax Foundation’s reach and impact around the world.
Prior to joining the Tax Foundation, Daniel worked in the United States Senate at the Joint Economic Committee as part of Senator Mike Lee’s (R-UT) Social Capital Project and on the policy staff for both Senator Lee and Senator Tim Scott (R-SC). In his time in the Senate, Daniel developed legislative initiatives on tax, trade, regulatory, and budget policy.
He has a master’s degree in Economic Policy from Central European University in Budapest, Hungary, and a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from North Greenville University in South Carolina.
Daniel lives in Halethorpe, Maryland, with his wife and their three children.
Latest Work
How GILTI Are U.S. Industries?
Both the Biden campaign and some Democratic members of Congress have recommended changes to GILTI, but before doing that, policymakers should consider how GILTI’s design can have ramifications for many U.S. companies and their tax burdens.
6 min read
Can GILTI and the GloBE be Harmonized in a Biden Administration?
While there are several parts of the policy that are subject to further discussion and agreement, GloBE is expected to be different from GILTI in several ways.
1 min read
An Investment Boost in the UK’s 2021 Budget
The UK’s Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak released the 2021 budget, and most important for near-term growth is the significant boost to capital allowances.
5 min read
U.S. Cross-border Tax Reform and the Cautionary Tale of GILTI
The Biden campaign and Senate Democrats identified changes to GILTI that would increase the taxes U.S. companies pay on their foreign earnings. Rather than tacking on changes to a system that is currently neither fully territorial nor worldwide, policymakers should evaluate the structure of the current system with a goal of it becoming more, not less, coherent.
51 min read
An “Interest”ing Tax Hike in the COVID-19 Relief Proposal
As the House Ways and Means Committee continues working on the latest round of fiscal relief amid the pandemic, one curious provision in the legislation is a tax hike on multinational companies. One section of the legislation would repeal a provision in current law that allows U.S. multinationals to choose to allocate their interest costs on a worldwide basis (more on that in a moment).
4 min read
Personnel Is Policy: Biden International Tax Team Edition
This week, the Treasury Department added several new appointees as staffing continues following President Biden’s inauguration. Among them were three scholars of international tax policy: economist Kimberly Clausing and law professors Rebecca Kysar and Itai Grinberg. These three will be influential in developing the administration’s approach to changing U.S. tax rules for multinational corporations and negotiating international tax policy changes at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
4 min read
The European Commission and the Taxation of the Digital Economy
The consultation on the EU’s digital levy provides an opportunity for policymakers and taxpayers to reflect on the underlying issues of digital taxation and potential consequences from a digital levy. Unless the EU digital levy is designed with an OECD agreement in mind, it is likely to cause more uncertainty in cross-border tax policy.
12 min read
Value-added Taxes in the Pandemic
Many governments have chosen to use VAT as a tool to provide tax relief for consumption in various sectors throughout the pandemic, but in the long term, VAT should not be used as a tool for relief.
3 min read
Consumption Tax Policies in OECD Countries
Despite the potential of consumption taxes as a neutral and efficient source of tax revenues, many governments have implemented policies that are unduly complex and have poorly designed tax bases that exclude many goods or services from taxation, or tax them at reduced rates.
40 min read
Day 2 of OECD Consultation on International Tax Reform Blueprints
The OECD consultation is in the context of the Inclusive Framework on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting which is made up of delegates from more than 135 countries and is focused on policies that reduce opportunities for tax avoidance by multinational companies. The current proposals being considered would change both where and how much companies pay in corporate taxes.
4 min read
Day 1 of OECD Consultation on International Tax Reform Blueprints
The first session was focused on Pillar 1 of the OECD proposal. The pieces in Pillar 1 would change tax rules so that companies would be paying more taxes in countries based on the location of customers. This approach would move more tax revenues into so-called “market countries.”
3 min read
Tax Foundation Response to OECD Public Consultation Document: Reports on the Pillar One and Pillar Two Blueprints
The Tax Foundation response to the OECD public consultation document on the reports on the OECD Pillar 1 and OECD Pillar 2 blueprints.
16 min read
Poland Borrows an Idea from Estonia’s Tax System, but Misses the Point
It’s important for Poland to understand the main lesson of the Estonian approach: taxes should be designed with an overarching approach to maximize neutrality and minimize complexity and distortions. Instead of simply adopting a preference for small businesses, the Polish government should instead overhaul its corporate tax rules and truly adopt the Estonian approach to taxation.
2 min read
Patent Box Regimes in Europe
Patent box regimes (also referred to as intellectual property, or IP, regimes) provide lower effective tax rates on income derived from IP.
4 min read
A Framework for the Future: Reforming the UK Tax System
Our new guide identifies key areas for improvement in UK tax policy and provides recommendations that would support long-term growth without putting a dent in government revenues.
24 min read
The UN Approach on Digital Taxation
The UN tax committee will be considering a change to the UN’s model tax treaty that, if adopted and implemented, could result in digital companies paying more taxes in countries where their customers are located even if those companies do not have physical locations there.
5 min read
Two Roads Diverge in the OECD’s Impact Assessment
The difference that the OECD presents between the potential impact in the context of agreement compared to a harmful tax and trade war should show policymakers the value of continuing multilateral discussions.
6 min read
How Would Biden’s Tax Plan Change the Competitiveness of the U.S. Tax Code?
While the Biden campaign is certainly focused on increasing taxes on U.S. businesses and high-income earners, it is important that policymakers also understand what that reversal might do to U.S. competitiveness, and the competitive global environment in which U.S. companies and U.S. workers operate.
3 min read
International Tax Competitiveness Index 2020
Our International Index compares OECD countries on over 40 variables that measure how well each country’s tax system promotes sustainable economic growth and investment.
13 min read