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Carbon Taxes in Europe
In recent years, several countries have taken measures to reduce carbon emissions, including instituting environmental regulations, emissions trading systems, and carbon taxes. In 1990, Finland was the world’s first country to introduce a carbon tax.
4 min readNet Operating Loss Carryforward and Carryback Provisions in Europe
Carryover tax provisions help businesses “smooth” their risk and income, making the tax code more neutral across investments and over time.
3 min readPatent Box Regimes in Europe, 2023
The aim of patent boxes is generally to encourage and attract local research and development (R&D) and to incentivize businesses to locate IP in the country. However, patent boxes can introduce another level of complexity to a tax system, and some recent research questions whether patent boxes are actually effective in driving innovation.
3 min readCapital Allowances in Europe, 2023
Capital allowances play an important role in a country’s corporate tax base and can impact investment decisions—with far-reaching economic consequences.
4 min readDiesel and Gas Taxes in Europe
As the EU pursues massive changes in public policy as part of its green transition, expect fuel taxes to be central to any policy discussions.
4 min readWhat European Countries Are Doing about Windfall Profit Taxes
It’s unlikely these implemented and proposed windfall taxes will achieve their goals of raising additional revenues without distorting the market. Instead, they would penalize domestic production and punitively target certain industries without a sound tax base.
13 min readIntegrated Tax Rates on Corporate Income in Europe
In most European OECD countries, corporate income is taxed twice, once at the entity level and once at the shareholder level.
3 min readTestimony: The Role of Corporate Taxation in the European Union’s Future Tax Policy Mix
As policymakers shift their focus away from tax rates and look to harmonize the EU’s corporate tax base, they should understand the benefits of full expensing.
5 min readTax Burden on Labor in Europe
To make the taxation of labor more efficient, policymakers should understand the inputs into the tax wedge, and taxpayers should understand how their tax burden funds government services.
3 min readWealth Taxes in Europe, 2023
Instead of reforming and hiking the wealth tax, perhaps policymakers should consider whether the tax is serving its intended objectives, and, if not, consider repealing the tax altogether.
4 min readThe Role of Pro-Growth Tax Policy and Private Investment in the European Union’s Green Transition
Permanent full expensing is an efficient and neutral tax policy that will allow markets to allocate private investment effectively while moving the economy towards the climate goals of the EU.
33 min readEstate, Inheritance, and Gift Taxes in Europe, 2023
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, saving, and work should make policymakers consider their repeal instead of boosting them.
3 min readTax Subsidies for R&D Expenditures in Europe
Many countries incentivize business investment in research and development (R&D), intending to foster innovation. A common approach is to provide direct government funding for R&D activity. However, a significant number of jurisdictions also offers R&D tax incentives.
3 min readDividend Tax Rates in Europe, 2022
In many countries, corporate profits are subject to two layers of taxation: the corporate income tax at the entity level when the corporation earns income, and the dividend tax or capital gains tax at the individual level when that income is passed to its shareholders as either dividends or capital gains.
3 min readCapital Gains Tax Rates in Europe, 2023
In many countries, investment income, such as dividends and capital gains, is taxed at a different rate than wage income. Denmark levies the highest top capital gains tax of all countries covered, at a rate of 42 percent. Norway levies the second-highest top capital gains tax at 37.8 percent. Finland and France follow, at 34 percent each.
4 min readTop Personal Income Tax Rates in Europe, 2023
Denmark (55.9 percent), France (55.4 percent), and Austria (55 percent) have the highest top statutory personal income tax rates among European OECD countries.
2 min readCorporate Income Tax Rates in Europe, 2023
Taking into account central and subcentral taxes, Portugal has the highest corporate tax rate in Europe at 31.5 percent, followed by Germany and Italy at 29.8 percent and 27.8 percent, respectively
2 min readVAT Rates in Europe, 2023
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).
4 min readActionable VAT Policy Gap in Europe
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.
3 min readComparing Europe’s Tax Systems: Individual Taxes
France’s individual income tax system is the least competitive among OECD countries. France’s top marginal tax rate of 45.9 percent is applied at 14.7 times the average national income. Additionally, a 9.7 surtax is applied to those at the upper end of the income distribution. Capital gains and dividends are both taxed at comparably high top rates of 34 percent.
2 min read