The 10 Highest Taxed Countries
There’s nothing delicious about taxes but there is something that this photo has in common with very high tax rates. With tomorrow being April 15th, the deadline for filing taxes in the United States, I thought it would be interesting to have a look at the highest tax rates in the world.
To keep this simple I’m just going to list the 10 most heavily taxed countries for single people with no children. I figure this is a good bracket to look at since most of us have fallen into this category at some point, even if we aren’t today.
These tax rates are based on OECD findings for 2006 and look at the average percentage of total taxes paid on earnings (income, social security, health care, etc).
10)Poland-43.7%
9)Finland-44.1%
8)Netherlands-44.4%
7)Italy-45.2 %
6)Sweden-47.9%
5)Austria-48.1%
4)France-50.2%
3)Hungary-51.0%
2)Germany-52.5%
1)Belgium-55.1%!
Wow. Belgians not only like waffles but they sure do like taxes! I know Europeans generally believe in paying higher taxes for the greater good of society, but what on Earth is the Belgian government doing? I don’t see them with 150,00 troops stationed in some cursed Middle Eastern country.
A few other interesting countries of note are The United States at 28.9%, Canada at 32.1%, Australia at 28.1% and the country that the UN recently named the best country to live, Iceland at 28.6%. It’s interesting to see how similar these tax rates are and the fact that the United States is the only one of these four that doesn’t offer socialized health care. So Americans, take it easy with those delicious Belgian waffles.
Photo Credit: Flickr Creative Commons
20 opinions for The 10 Highest Taxed Countries
The Toronto Traveler
Apr 16, 2008 at 1:23 pm
Very interesting that Iceland and Australia both have lower rates than the US. I thought Americans were supposed to be the ones obsessed with lower taxes?
Alex
Apr 16, 2008 at 11:36 pm
This was surprising, Americans are obsessed with lower taxes, unfortunately we just don’t get as much bang for our buck (actually in one sense we definitely do!) as some other nations.
The Toronto Traveler
Apr 17, 2008 at 3:59 am
Yeah, well your defense budget is what, like 600 billion dollars? And then another 10 billlion for the nuclear arsenal and god only knows how much else for all the wars, since those aren’t a part of the defense budget.
When you take all that out and factor in the still rather low tax rate, not much left for anything else.
Does the Netherlands rate go down for people that are married or with dependents? 40+% seems a bit high for people living in that situation.
b5media - Travel the World the b5media Way
Apr 17, 2008 at 4:11 pm
[...] Sirened lists the 10 highest taxed countries so you can see where your country ranks [...]
Alex
Apr 18, 2008 at 2:39 pm
Justin-It definitely does if you have dependents but I’m not 100% sure about married couples with no dependents. My wife and I will find out when we file our taxes next year as to how much we pay to the Dutch gov’t!
paul francis
Jun 20, 2008 at 4:04 pm
these figures are WRONG! AUSTRALIAS LOWEST TAX RATE IS 33.3% ON PERSONAL INCOME TAX,AND IT GOES TO 49% AFTER THE FIRST $400
Alex
Jun 22, 2008 at 3:30 pm
after $400?
paul francis
Jun 22, 2008 at 3:36 pm
yes alex it may be a little higher now,but as soon as you do some overtime we pay 49%,australia is the highest taxed country in the world,in my opinion,when you consider all the other taxes as well,we get ripped off badly,the wealthy dont pay much tax though,oh and politicians are exempt.
Alex
Jun 22, 2008 at 3:55 pm
I thought that number seemed low, but your numbers seem a smidge high. Although yes, my wife has told me that the Aussie government taxes the hell out of you on a 2nd job.
And then taxes on cigarettes and alcohol in Australia are VERY high. $10 Aussie a pack for smokes and 6 packs of beers at the store are minimum $10 Aus, that’s very expensive.
Here in the Netherlands cigarettes are 4 Euros and you can get a 6 pack of Hoegardeen at the store for 3.69 Euros (that would run you about $15 Aus in Australia). So taxes on cigs and alcohol here is much less than Australia.
paul francis
Jun 22, 2008 at 3:59 pm
a pack of cigs and 6 pack are far more than $10 eack,thats just the tax alone
round about joe
Jul 11, 2008 at 12:31 am
belgium has to tax its citizens so highly my poorly informed american friend,, it is one of the only ways it it avoids unemployment problems, .. you see it dosnt have much living space and dosnt have much of any valuable materials, and isnt big enougth to bully them from others, even if in the past it did :D,,
so the governemtn must tax people so it can give some if this money to others and they will then keep producing, this allows the business to make more money, also it makes it so then people with out work dont live like in the 2nd world as is the case in canada and america when you are unemployed.
also it must pay maternity leave for 1 year, and must kid the dentist and doctor for free , and other nice things,…
australia gives all these and more , proably it has the highest living standard in the world, along with iceland,,…. and the highest life exspectancy,, .. and statistics includ immergrant population which is of poorer health,, and still they are 2nd after iceland,,
but look they pay the same tax as america, but they recive more than the belgian ??? how does this work,, well they have more room to move and more materials and land.. and younger population and older working population..
now what does american have,, lots and lots and lots of people living on incomes same as those in russia, lots of poor people , lots and lots of crime,,.. lots of hiv aids :O..
and lots of huge huge social problems, that you never never fix..
america should be up at the top with australia and iceland, not at the bottom with slovenia and spain…
maybe the people in ameirca should open their eyes some time and .. start to see that all the rest of the developed world has it much better than they do…
poeple from other first world nations come to america becasue they can make money quick , pay low wages, pay low tax,,, cheap workers big profits and few controls..
it is a good place to make business..
but does that make it a good place to live for the normal worker.. no it dosnt..
4$ per hour is something for people living in brazil…
no health care and 2000000 prison population and 1200000 with aids is for african nations..
huge murder rates and crime and poor education are not things that should be on the shoulders of people of european decent……..
i think maybe you need another revolution , this time from your selves, not the british……
proably there was alot of good in the first ameircan revolution.. that was ahead of its time, but , now your behind…….
ps dutch man, you are wrong , 24 cans of beer in australia are about 22-24$ including tax…
but in germany same beer is proably half ,,
paul francis, you are totaly incorrect, it is 12.5% , 477$ per week is considered the absolute povity line in australia,
the governemnt welfare for pensioners if 547$ per every 2 weeks, and then housing or rend suplerment , plus travel card and deltan and health care,
for those not ill or old it is about 475-500$ per 2 weeks, plus all the above and also weafare incentive such as 500$ tax free loans in cash, and 400$ finding work bonus, plus 80$ per week you can earn without having any money taken,
and then it is only a low amount…
welfare paradise if your hooked on heroin, then you can have a pension if your cornicaly addicted
Alex
Jul 11, 2008 at 5:44 pm
round about joe-I think you missed something.
paul francis
Jul 11, 2008 at 9:37 pm
dont know where you get your info from joe,i have lived here all my life and i can asure you im am correct on taxes,the other subjects you mentioned are partially correct,i dont know what you mean with the 12%,$477 is the minimum wage fo adult male,taxes are 33.3% and over aroun $500 it goes to 49%,not to mention all the other taxes of course.
Alex
Jul 14, 2008 at 3:51 pm
I will say you can get a slab of beer in Australia for $22-$24, but it’s mostly stuff you don’t want to drink. Although I think you can sometimes get 24 VB’s on sale for around $24.
If you buy in bulk it’s not too ridiculous, but where they really get you is the 6 packs which are very pricey. And you can’t find 12 packs which I found bizarre, there should be something in between 6 and 24!
ready5
Jul 15, 2008 at 11:48 pm
Also in the US we have state taxes. In Ca it’s like 10%. Also popoerty tax on homes. Mines like 5 digits. Also sales tax, gas tax, and all kinds of other tax. All together I pay 60% of my income to taxes. Yeah Americans are higher than most don’t kid yourselves.
Alex
Jul 17, 2008 at 1:37 pm
ready5- Too true and the sucky part is that we get so little in return. And you know what else? If you are an American citizen living abroad, you are required to declare the income you make in another country. Paying taxes to Uncle Sam to get absolutely nothing in return.
Greg
Aug 27, 2008 at 1:07 pm
Well in Canada (Ontario) a pack of Cigs is $8.40
and a six pack of beer is $9.95 for 341 ml bottles.
so I don’t know what you all are complaining about.
The Canadian government is little more than a den of thieves.
Our taxes go up every year, and they are always inventing new ways to tax us.
Yet there is no money for health care or education, which are constantly being cut.
This is one reason why we have chosen to homeschool our kids, it’s cheaper than sending them to public school.
JJ
Nov 10, 2008 at 7:08 pm
Australia paying only 28.1%, I WISH!!!!!!!!!!!!
TRY 48% THAT IS OFF WAGES ONLY. NOT INCLUDING ALL OTHER TAXES ON CLOTHING, FOOD, PETROL, STAMP DUTY ON TOP OF BUYING A HOUSE ( $18,000 STAMP DUTY ON A $400k HOME)
Australia is one of the most taxed country in the world!
Alex
Jan 10, 2009 at 1:33 am
Paul Francis is wrong about income taxes in Australia. I live and work in Australia. Australia has progressive tax system.
Current tax rate
$0-$6K 0%
$6K-$34K 0%-12.4%
$34,001 – $80,000 - 12.4% – 22.5%
$80,001 – $180,000 - 22.5% – 32%
Over $180,000 32% – 45%
I don’t know how Paul came with 49% figure. As you can see the highest tax rate is 45% and you need to earn well above $180K. How many people in Australia earn this amount? I’d say less than 10%. Average income before tax in Australia is about $50K at the moment. May be a little less.
Also, there are many ways to minimise taxes. Through investment for example. That’s what most high earners do in Australia. Then there are salary sacrifices for most. Things that you can buy with non-taxed income. Some set up family trusts and distribute their earning among all family members to reduce the tax. What I can say about Australian tax system is that it’s a complex system. This has been discussed many times in press and for this reason most Australians go to tax accountants to fill their tax returns.
The report’s figures are accurate
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Income_tax_in_Australia
paul francis
Jan 19, 2009 at 10:43 am
sorry mate but those wikipedia stats are wrong,i was earning $50000 and overtime was taxed at 49%,i an born and bred here and i know our tax system,and if you happen to be paying child support well look out,cos that will get you paying another 22% of your gross total income per child,regards,Paul.
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