Tag: Tax Expenditures

Intellectual Property Boxes and the Paradox of Price Discrimination

| 15 May 2017
Fiscal, Research Papers | Tags: Corporate Taxes, Innovation, Patent Boxes, Tax Competition, Tax Expenditures
This paper considers the methods by which some existing laws and proposals offer different tax rates to different types of capital, a scheme variously known as a patent box, innovation box, or intellectual property box (IP box). It presents a model of international tax competition—what ... continue reading

Before We Reform Tax Policy, We Need to Know What Is Working

| 9 March 2017
Fiscal, Blog | Tags: Tax Expenditures
Congress and President Trump are embarking on what is likely to be a major rewrite of the federal income tax code. Yet, neither they nor anyone else knows whether the hundreds of tax preferences embedded in the law accomplish their stated purposes. ... continue reading

Inheritance Taxation, Corporate Succession and Sustainability

| 6 March 2017
Fiscal, Discussion Notes | Tags: Inheritance Tax, SMEs, Tax Expenditures
Inheritance and estate tax rates are highly heterogeneous across countries. Indeed, the lack of a broadly accepted model of optimal inheritance taxation is reflected in statutory tax rates ranging from 0% in several countries including Australia, Canada and Sweden to 55% in Japan. ... continue reading

Pension Tax Expenditures. A Costly Christmas Gift … Not From Santa

| 4 January 2017
Fiscal, Blog | Tags: Fiscal, Inequality, Pensions, Tax Expenditures
For people living in Switzerland, December 31 was the last day for 2016 contributions into their Pillar 3a retirement accounts – and hence for taking advantage of the exemption from income tax that these payments benefit from. The scheme is one of many examples from ... continue reading

Tax Expenditures and Sustainability. An Overview

| 11 November 2016
Fiscal, Discussion Notes | Tags: Employment, Energy, Fossil Fuel Subsidies, Health, Housing, Inequality, Innovation, Patent Boxes, Pensions, Tax Expenditures, VAT
Fiscal policy has significant effects on a broad sustainability agenda covering long-term economic, social and environmental goals. However, whereas a myriad of actors scrutinize taxation as well as direct government spending with regard to their impact on sustainability, a key feature of fiscal policy has ... continue reading

Climate Change, Carbon Pricing and Energy Tax Expenditures

| 6 October 2016
Fiscal, Blog | Tags: Carbon Pricing, Climate Change, Energy, Tax Expenditures
Climate change is moving up policy agendas worldwide. Last year’s COP21 was yet another wake-up call that the international community needs to take urgent action to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The main outcome of the meeting, the Paris Agreement, was a significant milestone in ... continue reading

Governments Should Use Tax Systems to Drive Inclusive Growth Agenda

and | 22 July 2016
Fiscal, Blog | Tags: Inequality, Tax Expenditures, Taxes
Tax policy design should play a key role in not only supporting growth but also in addressing distributional concerns. Taxes affect inequality through different channels. The most direct way in which taxes redistribute income is by narrowing the distribution of (post-tax) disposable income. Taxes can ... continue reading

Are Tax Expenditures a Good Way to Redistribute?

| 1 July 2016
Fiscal, Blog | Tags: Inequality, Tax Expenditures, Taxes
Since 2007, governments across several European countries have implemented cuts to their social programs in an attempt to tackle the fiscal deficits generated by the last economic and financial crisis. At the same time, they have increasingly made use of various tax related measures to ... continue reading

Tax Expenditures Deserve Far More Scrutiny

| 30 December 2015
Fiscal, Blog | Tags: Tax Expenditures, UK
Last month, the UK government presented its Spending Review, setting out departmental budgets for the next four years. There were protections for some departments and large cuts (though smaller than expected) for others. Coming after years of previous cuts, many departmental budgets by 2019 will ... continue reading

Boosting R&D through Patent Boxes. Panacea or Not?

| 10 December 2015
Fiscal, Blog | Tags: BEPS, Innovation, Tax Competition, Tax Expenditures
On October 5th, the OECD presented the final package of the OECD/G20 Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) initiative – a cornerstone in the international drive towards corporate tax reform. ... continue reading