IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/oec/ecoaaa/926-en.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Less Income Inequality and More Growth – Are They Compatible? Part 3. Income Redistribution via Taxes and Transfers Across OECD Countries

Author

Listed:
  • Isabelle Joumard

    (OECD)

  • Mauro Pisu

    (OECD)

  • Debra Bloch

    (OECD)

Abstract

Taxes and transfers reduce inequality in disposable income relative to market income. The effect varies, however, across OECD countries. The redistributive impact of taxes and transfers depends on the size, mix and the progressivity of each component. Some countries with a relatively small tax and welfare system (e.g. Australia) achieve the same redistributive impact as countries characterised by much higher taxes and transfers (e.g. Germany) because they rely more on income taxes, which are more progressive than other taxes, and on means-tested cash transfers. This paper provides an assessment of the redistributive effect of the main taxes and cash transfers based on a set of policy indicators and a literature review. It also identifies empirically four groups of countries with tax and transfer systems that share broadly similar features. The paper then assesses potential trade-offs and complementarities between economic growth and income redistribution objectives associated with various tax and transfer reform options. Moins d'inégalités de revenu et plus de croissance – Ces deux objectifs sont-ils compatibles ?: Partie 3. Redistribution du revenu par le biais de l'impôt et des transferts dans les pays de l'OCDE Les impôts et les transferts amènent les inégalités de revenu disponible à un niveau inférieur à celles du revenu marchand. Cet effet redistributif des impôts et transferts n’a pas la même ampleur dans tous les pays de l’OCDE. Il dépend de la taille, de la composition des impôts et transferts ainsi que de la progressivité de chaque composante. Certains pays ayant un système fiscal et de protection sociale relativement peu importants (comme l’Australie, par exemple) obtiennent le même effet redistributif que des pays où les impôts et les transferts sont beaucoup plus élevés (comme l’Allemagne) du fait qu’ils recourent davantage aux impôts sur le revenu, plus progressifs que les autres impôts, et à des transferts en espèces ciblés sur les ménages les plus démunis. Ce document donne une évaluation de l’effet redistributif des principaux impôts et transferts à partir d’une série d’indicateurs de l’action publique et d’une revue des études existantes. Il identifie aussi, de manière empirique, quatre groupes de pays dont les systèmes fiscaux et de protection sociale présentent des caractéristiques à peu près similaires. Le document évalue ensuite les arbitrages et complémentarités potentiels entre les objectifs de croissance économique et de redistribution du revenu relatifs aux diverses possibilités de réforme des systèmes fiscaux et de protection sociale.

Suggested Citation

  • Isabelle Joumard & Mauro Pisu & Debra Bloch, 2012. "Less Income Inequality and More Growth – Are They Compatible? Part 3. Income Redistribution via Taxes and Transfers Across OECD Countries," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 926, OECD Publishing.
  • Handle: RePEc:oec:ecoaaa:926-en
    DOI: 10.1787/5k9h296b1zjf-en
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1787/5k9h296b1zjf-en
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1787/5k9h296b1zjf-en?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Poterba, James M, 1989. "Lifetime Incidence and the Distributional Burden of Excise Taxes," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 79(2), pages 325-330, May.
    2. Garrett, Daniel M, 1995. "The Effects of Differential Mortality Rates on the Progressivity of Social Security," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 33(3), pages 457-475, July.
    3. Yingying Deng & Monica Prasad, 2009. "Taxation and the Worlds of Welfare," LIS Working papers 480, LIS Cross-National Data Center in Luxembourg.
    4. Thomas Piketty, 2011. "On the Long-Run Evolution of Inheritance: France 1820--2050," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 126(3), pages 1071-1131.
    5. Paul van den Noord & Chistopher Heady, 2001. "Surveillance of Tax Policies: A Synthesis of Findings in Economic Surveys," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 303, OECD Publishing.
    6. Leonard E. Burman & Christopher Geissler & Eric J. Toder, 2008. "How Big Are Total Individual Income Tax Expenditures, and Who Benefits from Them?," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 98(2), pages 79-83, May.
    7. Peter Hoeller & Isabelle Joumard & Mauro Pisu & Debra Bloch, 2012. "Less Income Inequality and More Growth – Are They Compatible? Part 1. Mapping Income Inequality Across the OECD," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 924, OECD Publishing.
    8. Thomas Piketty & Emmanuel Saez, 2007. "How Progressive is the U.S. Federal Tax System? A Historical and International Perspective," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 21(1), pages 3-24, Winter.
    9. Pablo Antolín & Alain de Serres & Christine de la Maisonneuve, 2004. "Long-Term Budgetary Implications of Tax-Favoured Retirement Plans," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 393, OECD Publishing.
    10. Michèle Belot & Jan C. van Ours, 2004. "Does the recent success of some OECD countries in lowering their unemployment rates lie in the clever design of their labor market reforms?," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 56(4), pages 621-642, October.
    11. Isabelle Joumard, 2003. "Tax systems in European Union countries," OECD Economic Studies, OECD Publishing, vol. 2002(1), pages 91-151.
    12. Matsaganis, Manos & Flevotomou, Maria, 2007. "The impact of mortgage interest tax relief in the Netherlands, Sweden, Finland, Italy and Greece," EUROMOD Working Papers EM2/07, EUROMOD at the Institute for Social and Economic Research.
    13. Immervoll, Herwig & Richardson, Linda, 2011. "Redistribution Policy and Inequality Reduction in OECD Countries: What Has Changed in Two Decades?," IZA Discussion Papers 6030, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    14. Gopi Shah Goda & John B. Shoven & Sita Nataraj Slavov, 2011. "Differential Mortality by Income and Social Security Progressivity," NBER Chapters, in: Explorations in the Economics of Aging, pages 189-204, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    15. Peter, Klara Sabirianova & Buttrick, Steve & Duncan, Denvil, 2010. "Global Reform of Personal Income Taxation, 1981–2005: Evidence From 189 Countries," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association;National Tax Journal, vol. 63(3), pages 447-478, September.
    16. R. A. Musgrave & Tun Thin, 1948. "Income Tax Progression, 1929-48," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 56(6), pages 498-498.
    17. James B. Davies & Susanna Sandström & Anthony Shorrocks & Edward N. Wolff, 2011. "The Level and Distribution of Global Household Wealth," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 121(551), pages 223-254, March.
    18. Willem Adema & Maxime Ladaique, 2009. "How Expensive is the Welfare State?: Gross and Net Indicators in the OECD Social Expenditure Database (SOCX)," OECD Social, Employment and Migration Working Papers 92, OECD Publishing.
    19. Whitehouse, Edward, 2006. "New indicators of 30 OECD countries' pension systems," Journal of Pension Economics and Finance, Cambridge University Press, vol. 5(3), pages 275-298, November.
    20. Peter Diamond & Emmanuel Saez, 2011. "The Case for a Progressive Tax: From Basic Research to Policy Recommendations," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 25(4), pages 165-190, Fall.
    21. Jesse Rothstein, 2008. "The Unintended Consequences of Encouraging Work: Tax Incidence and the EITC," Working Papers 1049, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Center for Economic Policy Studies..
    22. Gordon Keenay & Edward Whitehouse, 2003. "The Role of the Personal Tax System in Old-Age Support: A Survey of 15 Countries," Fiscal Studies, Institute for Fiscal Studies, vol. 24(1), pages 1-21, March.
    23. Jesse Rothstein, 2008. "The Unintended Consequences of Encouraging Work: Tax Incidence and the EITC," Working Papers 1049, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Center for Economic Policy Studies..
    24. Kakwani, Nanok C, 1977. "Measurement of Tax Progressivity: An International Comparison," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 87(345), pages 71-80, March.
    25. Christophe Hachon, 2009. "Who Really Benefits from Pension Systems ? When Life Expectancy Matters," Revue d'économie politique, Dalloz, vol. 119(4), pages 613-632.
    26. Andrea Bassanini & Romain Duval, 2006. "Employment Patterns in OECD Countries: Reassessing the Role of Policies and Institutions," OECD Social, Employment and Migration Working Papers 35, OECD Publishing.
    27. Roach, Brian A., 2003. "Progressive and Regressive Taxation in the United States: Who's Really Paying (and Not Paying) Their Fair Share?," Working Papers 15603, Tufts University, Global Development and Environment Institute.
    28. Kaja Bonesmo Fredriksen, 2012. "Less Income Inequality and More Growth – Are they Compatible? Part 6. The Distribution of Wealth," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 929, OECD Publishing.
    29. Clemens Fuest & Judith Niehues & Andreas Peichl, 2010. "The Redistributive Effects of Tax Benefit Systems in the Enlarged EU," Public Finance Review, , vol. 38(4), pages 473-500, July.
    30. Mauro Pisu, 2012. "Less Income Inequality and More Growth – Are they Compatible? Part 5. Poverty in OECD Countries," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 928, OECD Publishing.
    31. Isabell Koske & Jean-Marc Fournier & Isabelle Wanner, 2012. "Less Income Inequality and More Growth – Are They Compatible? Part 2. The Distribution of Labour Income," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 925, OECD Publishing.
    32. Sen, Amartya, 1983. "Poor, Relatively Speaking," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 35(2), pages 153-169, July.
    33. Kakwani, N, 1979. "Measurement of Tax Progressivity: A Reply," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 89(355), pages 653-657, September.
    34. Robert Price & Thai-Thanh Dang, 2011. "Adjusting Fiscal Balances for Asset Price Cycles," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 868, OECD Publishing.
    35. Kwang-Yeol Yoo & Alain de Serres, 2004. "Tax Treatment of Private Pension Savings in OECD Countries and the Net Tax Cost Per Unit of Contribution to Tax-Favoured Schemes," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 406, OECD Publishing.
    36. Neil Warren, 2008. "A Review of Studies on the Distributional Impact of Consumption Taxes in OECD Countries," OECD Social, Employment and Migration Working Papers 64, OECD Publishing.
    37. Åsa Johansson & Chistopher Heady & Jens Matthias Arnold & Bert Brys & Laura Vartia, 2008. "Taxation and Economic Growth," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 620, OECD Publishing.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Peter Hoeller, 2012. "Less Income Inequality and More Growth – Are they Compatible? Part 4. Top Incomes," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 927, OECD Publishing.
    2. Pietrovito, Filomena & Pozzolo, Alberto Franco & Resce, Giuliano & Scialà, Antonio, 2023. "Fiscal decentralization and income (re)distribution in OECD countries’ regions," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 69-81.
    3. Conrad Scheibe, 2016. "Fiscal Consolidations and Their Effects on Income Inequality," UCL SSEES Economics and Business working paper series 2016-4, UCL School of Slavonic and East European Studies (SSEES).
    4. Kaja Bonesmo Fredriksen, 2012. "Income Inequality in the European Union," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 952, OECD Publishing.
    5. Łukasz Rawdanowicz & Eckhard Wurzel & Ane Kathrine Christensen, 2013. "The Equity Implications of Fiscal Consolidation," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 1013, OECD Publishing.
    6. Dotti, Valerio, 2020. "Income inequality, size of government, and tax progressivity: A positive theory," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 121(C).
    7. Isabell Koske & Jean-Marc Fournier & Isabelle Wanner, 2012. "Less Income Inequality and More Growth – Are They Compatible? Part 2. The Distribution of Labour Income," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 925, OECD Publishing.
    8. Peter Hoeller & Isabelle Joumard & Mauro Pisu & Debra Bloch, 2012. "Less Income Inequality and More Growth – Are They Compatible? Part 1. Mapping Income Inequality Across the OECD," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 924, OECD Publishing.
    9. Abdulaleem Isiaka & Alexander Mihailov & Giovanni Razzi, 2022. "Distributional Effects of Public Spending and Tax Shocks in Middle-Income Countries: A Panel VAR Approach," Economics Discussion Papers em-dp2022-09, Department of Economics, University of Reading.
    10. Mr. Raphael A Espinoza & Mrs. Esther Perez Ruiz, 2016. "How Do Fiscal and Labor Policies in France Affect Inequality?," IMF Working Papers 2016/041, International Monetary Fund.
    11. Brown, Sarah & Kontonikas, Alexandros & Montagnoli, Alberto & Moro, Mirko & Onnis, Luisanna, 2021. "Life satisfaction and austerity: Expectations and the macroeconomy," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    12. Oliver Denk & Robert P. Hagemann & Patrick Lenain & Valentin Somma, 2013. "Inequality and Poverty in the United States: Public Policies for Inclusive Growth," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 1052, OECD Publishing.
    13. Sarah Marchal & Wim Van Lancker, 2018. "The measurement of targeting intentions in complex welfare states: a proposal and empirical applications," Working Papers 1801, Herman Deleeck Centre for Social Policy, University of Antwerp.
    14. Isabelle Joumard & Mauro Pisu & Debbie Bloch, 2012. "Tackling income inequality: The role of taxes and transfers," OECD Journal: Economic Studies, OECD Publishing, vol. 2012(1), pages 37-70.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Isabelle Joumard & Mauro Pisu & Debbie Bloch, 2012. "Tackling income inequality: The role of taxes and transfers," OECD Journal: Economic Studies, OECD Publishing, vol. 2012(1), pages 37-70.
    2. Peter Hoeller & Isabelle Joumard & Isabell Koske, 2014. "Reducing Income Inequality While Boosting Economic Growth: Can It Be Done? Evidence From Oecd Countries," The Singapore Economic Review (SER), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 59(01), pages 1-22.
    3. Łukasz Rawdanowicz & Eckhard Wurzel & Ane Kathrine Christensen, 2013. "The Equity Implications of Fiscal Consolidation," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 1013, OECD Publishing.
    4. Checherita-Westphal, Cristina & Attinasi, Maria Grazia & Rieth, Malte, 2011. "Labour tax progressivity and output volatility: evidence from OECD countries," Working Paper Series 1380, European Central Bank.
    5. Orsetta Causa & Mikkel Hermansen, 2017. "Income redistribution through taxes and transfers across OECD countries," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 1453, OECD Publishing.
    6. Elvire Guillaud & Matthew Olckers & Michaël Zemmour, 2020. "Four Levers of Redistribution: The Impact of Tax and Transfer Systems on Inequality Reduction," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 66(2), pages 444-466, June.
    7. Robert P. Hagemann, 2012. "Fiscal Consolidation: Part 6. What Are the Best Policy Instruments for Fiscal Consolidation?," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 937, OECD Publishing.
    8. Isabelle Joumard & Juliana Londoño Vélez, 2013. "Income Inequality and Poverty in Colombia - Part 1. The Role of the Labour Market," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 1036, OECD Publishing.
    9. Oliver Hümbelin, 2016. "Ungleichheit und Umverteilung über das Steuersystem. Eine Analyse der Verteilungseffekte von direkten Steuern und steuerlichen Abzügen mit Steuerdaten des Kantons Aargau (2001-2011)," University of Bern Social Sciences Working Papers 23, University of Bern, Department of Social Sciences.
    10. Douglas Sutherland & Peter Hoeller & Rossana Merola, 2012. "Fiscal Consolidation: Part 1. How Much is Needed and How to Reduce Debt to a Prudent Level?," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 932, OECD Publishing.
    11. Chen Wang & Kees Goudswaard & Koen Caminada, 2012. "Disentangling Income Inequality and the Redistributive Effect of Taxes and Transfers in 20 LIS Countries Over Time Evidence from the LIS Data," LIS Working papers 581, LIS Cross-National Data Center in Luxembourg.
    12. Petr David, 2019. "Optimization of Gini Coefficient Affected by Imperfect Input Data," European Journal of Business Science and Technology, Mendel University in Brno, Faculty of Business and Economics, vol. 5(1), pages 21-29.
    13. Onrubia Fernández, Jorge & Picos, Fidel & Rodado, María del Carmen, 2019. "Shifting tax burden to top income earners: What is the best way to reduce inequality?," Economics - The Open-Access, Open-Assessment E-Journal (2007-2020), Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel), vol. 13, pages 1-31.
    14. Rieth, Malte & Checherita-Westphal, Cristina & Attinasi, Maria-Grazia, 2016. "Personal income tax progressivity and output volatility: Evidence from OECD countries," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 49(3), pages 968-996.
    15. Sara Torregrosa Hetland, 2015. "Did democracy bring redistribution? Insights from the Spanish tax system, 1960–90," European Review of Economic History, Oxford University Press, vol. 19(3), pages 294-315.
    16. Jorge Martínez-Vázquez & Violeta Vulovic & Blanca Moreno Dodson, 2012. "The Impact of Tax and Expenditure Policies on Income Distribution: Evidence from a Large Panel of Countries," Hacienda Pública Española / Review of Public Economics, IEF, vol. 200(1), pages 95-130, March.
    17. Momi Dahan, 2023. "Social Construction And The Progressivity Of Local Tax Relief," Israel Economic Review, Bank of Israel, vol. 21(1), pages 1-33, March.
    18. Oliver Denk & Robert P. Hagemann & Patrick Lenain & Valentin Somma, 2013. "Inequality and Poverty in the United States: Public Policies for Inclusive Growth," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 1052, OECD Publishing.
    19. Claudia Gerber & Mr. Alexander D Klemm & Ms. Li Liu & Mr. Victor Mylonas, 2018. "Personal Income Tax Progressivity: Trends and Implications," IMF Working Papers 2018/246, International Monetary Fund.
    20. Slavomíra Tahova & Anna Banociova, 2020. "Assessment of the Redistribution Function of Corporate Income Tax," Montenegrin Journal of Economics, Economic Laboratory for Transition Research (ELIT), vol. 16(3), pages 57-67.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    analyse par clusters; cluster analysis; impôt; income inequality; inégalité des revenus; redistribution; redistribution; système de protection sociale; taxes; transfers; transferts; welfare system;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H2 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue
    • H23 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Externalities; Redistributive Effects; Environmental Taxes and Subsidies
    • H53 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Government Expenditures and Welfare Programs
    • I3 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty
    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:oec:ecoaaa:926-en. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: the person in charge (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/edoecfr.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.