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Does labour supply respond to a flat tax?

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  • Denvil Duncan
  • Klara Sabirianova Peter

Abstract

We exploit the exogenous change in marginal tax rates created by the Russian flat tax reform of 2001 to identify the effect of taxes on the labour supply of men and women. We apply a weighted difference‐in‐difference regression approach and instrumental variables to estimate labour supply functions using a panel dataset. The mean regression results indicate that the tax reform led to a statistically significant increase in hours of work for men but had no effect on work hours for women. However, we find a positive response to tax changes in both tails of the female work hour distribution. We also find that the reform increased the probability of finding a job among both men and women. Despite significant variation in individual responses, the aggregate labour supply elasticities are trivial. This suggests that reform‐induced changes in labour supply are an unlikely explanation for the amplified personal income tax revenues that followed the reform.

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  • Denvil Duncan & Klara Sabirianova Peter, 2010. "Does labour supply respond to a flat tax?," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 18(2), pages 365-404, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:etrans:v:18:y:2010:i:2:p:365-404
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-0351.2009.00383.x
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    Cited by:

    1. Matus Senaj & Zuzana Siebertova & Norbert Svarda & Jana Valachyova, 2016. "Labour Force Participation Elasticities: the Case of Slovakia," Working Papers Working Paper No. 1/2016, Council for Budget Responsibility.
    2. Matus Senaj & Zuzana Siebertova & Norbert Svarda & Jana Valachyova, 2016. "Labour force participation elasticities and the move away from a flat tax: the case of Slovakia," IZA Journal of European Labor Studies, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 5(1), pages 1-26, December.
    3. Doerrenberg, Philipp & Duncan, Denvil, 2014. "Experimental evidence on the relationship between tax evasion opportunities and labor supply," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 48-70.
    4. Norbert Švarda & Matúš Senaj & Michal Horváth & Zuzana Siebertová, 2015. "The End of the Flat Tax Experiment in Slovakia," Discussion Papers 33, Central European Labour Studies Institute (CELSI).
    5. Norbert Švarda & Jana Valachyová & Matúš Senaj & Michal Horváth & Zuzana Siebertová, 2018. "The end of the flat tax experiment in Slovakia: An evaluation using behavioural microsimulation linked with a dynamic macroeconomic framework," Discussion Papers 50, Central European Labour Studies Institute (CELSI).
    6. Di Nola, Alessandro & Kocharkov, Georgi & Vasilev, Aleksandar, 2016. "Productivity, Taxation and Evasion: A Quantitative Exploration of the Determinants of the Informal Economy," EconStor Preprints 144164, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics.
    7. Horváth, Michal & Senaj, Matúš & Siebertová, Zuzana & Švarda, Norbert & Valachyová, Jana, 2019. "The end of the flat tax experiment in Slovakia: An evaluation using behavioural microsimulation in a dynamic macroeconomic framework," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 171-184.
    8. Michal Horvath & Matus Senaj & Zuzana Siebertova & Norbert Svarda & Jana Valachyova, 2018. "Evaluating the Aggregate Effects of Tax and Benefit Reforms," Working Papers Working Paper No. 1/2018, Council for Budget Responsibility.
    9. Kalíšková, Klára, 2014. "Labor supply consequences of family taxation: Evidence from the Czech Republic," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 234-244.
    10. Anna Lukiyanova, 2015. "Earnings inequality and informal employment in Russia," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 23(2), pages 469-516, April.

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