I don’t get this, the only argument is the like Austrian school taxation is theft argument but in that case all the taxes that income tax haters like are also just as much theft.
You see a new article every week about why we need to get rid of income tax and replace it with some asinine “progressive consumption tax” that allows for poor people to write some stuff off but not other stuff its a mess.
every inane over complicated solution always runs into either not making enough, being to expensive to enforce and calculate or being regressive
even in Europe which comes the closest to this with the use of vats but income tax is still their main cash cow
this is a solution in search of a problem income tax works, economist agree when done right (as in you don’t raise income tax 50% in a day)it has the least distortion, it’s easy to collect and raises massive revenue
Income taxes (and also sales taxes, in most cases) disproportionately impact lower earners. Someone earning minimum wage likely devotes the majority of their income to cost of living essentials. Conversely, someone earning 10x minimum wage will spend a much lower percentage.
The exclusion level generally is set quite a bit below minimum wages, and the a progressive tax doesn’t always fix that, as cost of living/inflation can outpace legislation very quickly.
The other reason that it’s not entirely fair is that the wealthy don’t earn a salary. They earn dividends and do all kinds of things to avoid having an income. Someone who pulls down $1 million in salary either needs an accountant or earns an additional 10x compensation via stock grants, dividends, etc., which are (in most jurisdictions) taxed very differently than income. In the USA, for example, the top tax bracket (federal) for income is 37%, whereas a stock grant held for 1 year after vesting would be taxed at no more than 20% (and I’m grossly oversimplifying).
also low income earners get all their money back in tax returns, you hear this a lot but the bottom 40% of workers don’t pay anything in taxes
it is very progressive the highest income earners so like doctors and lawyers pay the most in income tax
it depends
Jurisdiction is key, of course.