The Elgar Guide to Tax Systems

Description

Tax systems have changed considerably in the past three decades. These fundamental changes have been the result of economic globalization, new political stances, and also of developments in public finance thought. The chapters in this volume offer a critical review of those changes from the perspectives of tax theory, policy and tax administration practice, and the political economy of taxation. The authors also consider what sort of reforms are worth undertaking in tax policy design, tax administration and enforcement, and the assignment of sub-national taxes. In this volume, renowned public finance scholars analyze the state of taxes in the world, including tax systems in OECD countries as well as the current trends and types of taxation, such as direct versus indirect taxation, personal income tax, corporate income tax, value-added tax and others tried and re-tried all over the world amidst political realities which make public finance - and the institutions used to administer it - of critical importance to emerging and to established economies. Economists in academia, government, and business along with tax lawyers and policymakers will find this volume an invaluable resource. Cover Copyright Contents Contributors Acknowledgments Abbreviations Introduction 1 Tax systems in the OECD: recent evolution, competition, and convergence 2 Direct versus indirect taxation: trends, theory, and economic significance 3 Individual income taxation: income, consumption, or dual? 4 The challenges of corporate income taxes in a globalized world 5 Wealth and wealth transfer taxation: a survey 6 Value-added tax: onward and upward? 7 The economics of excise taxation 8 The scale and scope of environmental taxation 9 Financing subnational governments with decentralized taxes 10 The administration of tax systems 11 Political regimes, institutions, and the nature of tax systems* 12 Tax system change and the impact of tax research* Index