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How Patent Boxes Impact Business Decisions
As with every change in tax policy, there are trade-offs. The Modified Nexus Approach adds an additional layer of complexity to the already complex issue of taxing IP income. Linking tax breaks for IP income to its associated R&D activity has changed the game and will likely result in some businesses restructuring and relocating their IP assets and R&D activity. Effective tax rates on IP income will likely play an important role in determining optimal locations, giving measures such as R&D credits more importance. Whether this new approach to IP taxation will impact profit shifting and which countries will be the winners and losers is yet to be seen.
6 min read
Patent Box Regimes in Europe, 2019
4 min read
Switzerland Referendum Approves Tax Reform
15 min read
Business in America
Who are the workers, consumers, and shareholders who interact with businesses in the U.S.? What forms do these businesses take? How do business taxes impact people’s lives? It is essential we answer these questions in order to design a business tax system that is simple, efficient, and enables economic progress.
5 min read
Depreciation Requires Businesses to Pay Tax on Income That Doesn’t Exist
While tax rates matter to businesses, so too does the measure of income to which those tax rates apply. The corporate income tax is a tax on profits, normally defined as revenue minus costs. However, under the current tax code, businesses are unable to deduct the full cost of certain expenses—their capital investments—meaning the tax code is not neutral and actually increases the cost of investment.
3 min read
Taxes on Capital Income Are More Than Just the Corporate Income Tax
The United States’ statutory corporate income tax rate is now more aligned with the rates of other nations . However, taxes on capital income, or corporate investment, are more than just the corporate income tax. Shareholder-level taxes, such as those on dividends and capital gains, also affect incentives to save and invest.
3 min read
New Details on the Austrian Tax Reform Plan
14 min read
State Corporate Income Taxes Increase Tax Burden on Corporate Profits
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) reduced the U.S. federal corporate income tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent. However, most U.S. states also tax corporate income. These state-level taxes mean the average statutory corporate income tax rate in the U.S., which combines the average of state corporate income tax rates with the federal corporate income tax rate, is 25.8 percent in 2019.
2 min read
Taxable Income vs. Book Income: Why Some Corporations Pay No Income Tax
Why do some companies appear to be profitable but pay little or no federal income taxes? It’s largely due to differences between book and taxable income.
4 min read
The Lowered Corporate Income Tax Rate Makes the U.S. More Competitive Abroad
One of the most significant provisions in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was the reduction of the U.S. corporate income tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent. Over time, the lower corporate rate will encourage new investment and lead to additional economic growth. It will make the U.S. more attractive for companies by increasing after-tax returns on investments and will discourage companies from shifting profits to low-tax jurisdictions.
2 min read
Anti-Base Erosion Provisions and Territorial Tax Systems in OECD Countries
The U.S. decision to adopt a territorial tax system is certainly an improvement over having a worldwide system. However, in moving to a territorial system some of the new features created with the TCJA increased the complexity of the system.
38 min read
Firm Variation by Employment and Taxes
Less than one percent of businesses employ almost half of the private sector workforce. Large companies pay 89% of corporate income taxes in the United States.
2 min read
Corporate and Pass-through Business Income and Returns Since 1980
More business income is reported on individual tax returns than corporate returns. The U.S. now has fewer corporations and more individually owned businesses. Corporations make up less than 5 percent of businesses but earn 60 percent of revenues.
3 min read
Sources of Government Revenue in the OECD, 2019 Update
OECD countries have on average become more reliant on consumption taxes and less reliant on individual income taxes. These policy changes matter, considering that consumption-based taxes raise revenue with less economic damage and distortionary effects than taxes on income.
10 min read
An Analysis of Senator Warren’s ‘Real Corporate Profits Tax’
Sen. Elizabeth Warren introduced a 7 percent surtax on corporate profits called the “Real Corporate Profits Tax.” We estimate that this tax would reduce the incentive to invest in the United States, and result in a 1.9 percent smaller economy, a 3.3 percent smaller capital stock, and 1.5 percent lower wages. The surtax would raise $872 billion between 2020 and 2029 on a conventional basis and $476 billion on a dynamic basis. The tax would make the tax code more progressive, but it would fall on taxpayers in every income group.
9 min read