All Research and Data

Net Operating Loss Policies in the OECD

During the COVID-19 pandemic, several OECD countries temporarily expanded their NOL carrybacks and carryforwards to provide relief to illiquid but otherwise solvent businesses. These policies should be made permanent and, where necessary, expanded.

VAT Bases in Europe

As economic activity resumes and the task of accounting for the deficits incurred in navigating the crisis of the past year becomes the focus of fiscal policy deliberations, a greater reliance on VAT could be an important tool in ensuring fiscal stability going forward. Countries should use this as an opportunity to improve VAT systems by re-examining carveouts in the form of exemptions and reduced rates.

Distilled Spirits Taxes by State, 2021

Of all alcoholic beverages subject to taxation, stiff drinks—and all distilled spirits—face the stiffest tax rates. Like many excise taxes, the treatment of distilled spirits varies widely across the states.

Reduced Corporate Income Tax Rates for Small Businesses in Europe

Corporate income taxes are commonly levied as a flat rate on business profits. However, some countries provide reduced corporate income tax rates for small businesses. Out of 27 European OECD countries covered in today’s map, eight levy a reduced corporate tax rate on businesses that have revenues or profits below a certain threshold.

What Are the Chances Your State Withholds Much of Your Lottery Winnings?

Krispy Kreme may have started the vaccine incentive ball rolling, but many states are putting big money into the effort with vaccine lotteries. Unlike a normal lottery, no one is paying for tickets—but the tax collector still gets paid when someone wins.

Carbon Taxes in Europe, 2021

In recent years, several countries have taken measures to reduce carbon emissions, including instituting environmental regulations, emissions trading systems (ETS), and carbon taxes.

How Well-Funded Are Pension Plans in Your State?

Although most states are on solid financial footing following the coronavirus crisis, pension liabilities are a deep-seated problem that long predates the pandemic.

Countries Should Be Cautious about Relying on Inheritance Taxes for Revenue

As tempting as inheritance, estate, and gift taxes might look especially when the OECD notes them as a way to reduce wealth inequality, their limited capacity to collect revenue and their negative impact on entrepreneurial activity, savings, and work should make policymakers consider their repeal instead of boosting them.

Tax Relief for Families in Europe

Most countries provide tax relief to families with children—typically through targeted tax breaks that lower income taxes. While all European OECD countries provide tax relief for families, its extent varies substantially across countries.

How Does Your State Treat Social Security Income?

Thirteen states tax Social Security benefits, a matter of significant interest to retirees. Each of these states has its own approach to determining what share of benefits is subject to tax, though these provisions can be grouped together into a few broad categories.

How Much Does Your State Collect in Property Taxes Per Capita?

Property taxes are an important source of revenue for local and state governments. In FY 2018, property taxes generated over 30 percent of total U.S. state and local tax collections and over 70 percent of local tax collections.

A Comparison of the Tax Burden on Labor in the OECD, 2021

Governments often justify higher tax burdens with more extensive public services. However, the cost of these services can be more than half of an average worker’s salary.

Joint Committee on Taxation Data Shows Federal Tax System Is Progressive

New Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) data indicates that the federal tax system is progressive, consistent with similar analysis by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), and the OECD.

Dividend Tax Rates in Europe, 2021

How Much Does Your State Collect in Sales Taxes Per Capita?

Rightsizing a state’s sales tax base can not only make the tax more equitable and better align it with the modern economy but also generate revenue that can be used to pay down the rates of more harmful taxes. That is why sales tax base broadening, which is favored by public finance scholars across the political spectrum, features in many tax reform plans.

Taxing Capital – An International Comparison

The taxation of capital—at both the individual and the corporate level—is much debated and affects economic growth by lowering the incentives to save and invest.

Top Personal Income Tax Rates in Europe, 2021

Most countries’ personal income taxes have a progressive structure, meaning that the tax rate paid by individuals increases as they earn higher wages. The highest tax rate individuals pay differs significantly across Europe, with Denmark (55.9 percent), France (55.4 percent), and Austria (55 percent) having the highest top statutory personal income tax rates among European OECD countries.

What Location Matters Can Tell Us About State Tax Competitiveness

Location Matters is an account of tax complexity and the ways that tax structure affect competitiveness. For policymakers, it represents an opportunity to explore the seemingly more arcane tax provisions that can have a significant impact on business tax burdens, and to discover how their tax code—often completely by accident—picks winners and losers.

U.S. Top Combined Integrated Tax Rate on Corporate Income Would Become Highest in the OECD

Under President Biden’s tax plan, the United States would tax corporate income at the highest top rate in the industrialized world, averaging 65.1 percent.

Estate, Inheritance, and Gift Taxes in Europe, 2021

Estate tax is levied on the property of the deceased and is paid by the estate itself. Inheritance taxes, in contrast, are only levied on the value of assets transferred and are paid by the heirs. Gift taxes are levied when property is transferred by a living individual. The majority of European countries covered in today’s map currently levy estate, inheritance, or gift taxes.