WP 2012-02. Executive Summary The quality of the institutional environment is a crucial issue in understanding the effective outcome of fiscal decentralization initiatives. However, there has been so far very…
Canada was recently elected by Forbes magazine number one country in the world to do business. Among other things, its corporate tax rate (federal and provincial rates combined) is at 25%, the lowest among G7 countries. But some provinces in Canada still have to be convinced that this is a move in the right direction. May be the fact that revenues from corporate taxes remain high, and even higher than it was before the cuts, will help them.
The Rajoy administration in Spain announced two months ago one of the largest tax increases in recent Spanish history. It aims to raise 6 billion euros ($7.9 billion) — along with a spending cut of nearly 9 billion euros ($11.8 billion). The measure mainly consists of a so-called solidarity surtax to come on top of tax rates on income and capital gains; it also includes an increase in real estate taxes.
In March 2010, when the Greek debt crisis was heating up, then-ECB president Jean Claude Trichet declared to the EU parliament that the “monetary Union in Europe is far more than a monetary arrangement. It is a union of shared destiny”. Less than two months later the ECB reversed its refusal to monetize debt and openly started buying government bonds in violation of its own charta. Germany also gave up its reservations about bailing out other countries. A first aid deal for Greece was signed and, because that didn’t help for long, a Euro rescue package to the tune of € 750 billion was put in place.
is the drop of tax revenue in the UK compared with January 2011. The natural explanation that comes to mind is the increase of the marginal tax rate from 40…
This is the US debt reduction over the next 10 years claimed in President Obama’s latest budget proposal. After careful examination of this amount it appears nevertheless that the spending…
We all receive from and give to the State. But exactly how much ? An initiative from INESS, a slovakian think tank, helps citizen to quickly get an approximation of…
On February 16th, 2012 the French Parliament has adopted its version of the so-called Tobin tax; a version that, some says, is partially based on the stamp tax levied in the City. The tax, to be effective August 1st, will be levied on all transactions involving equities from a French company if the capital of that company exceeds €1 billion and regardless of the place where the transaction is carried out. Hence, the tax concerns some 100 French companies publicly traded. Its rate is fixed at 0,1%.
As is publicly known, Mariano Rajoy, leader of the Spanish Partido Popular, recently became president of the Spanish government. Mr. Rajoy is poised to introduce new measures needed by the Spanish economy in order to, in first instance, stop the bleeding (in general terms, but in particular regarding unemployment rates), and subsequently, to initiate a new positive trend for the country, as a relevant part integrated in the European Union economy.? ? Among the urgent measures, those related to taxation are essential to achieve a balanced economy.
The first of February marks another harsh date for French real estate owners. From this day there are new taxation rules on capital gains realized with the sale of a second home or a land. While previously the capital gains were exonerated if the real estate is owned since more than 15 years, now this delay has been increased to 30 years. The tax on capital gains thus reaches 19% if the property is sold during the five first years after acquisition and the rate is progressively decreasing the following 25 years. One has to add to those taxes the social contributions.