Is The U.S. Really a Low-Tax Country?

Lowest,Level,Of,Tax,Concept,,Knob.,3d,Rendering

Many U.S. taxpayers feel that our country’s taxes are too high, no matter which economic class you’re in. Likewise, regardless of which side of the political world you rest, most people would agree that the U.S. tax system needs some serious upgrading, and not just some fine-tuning. However, it appears that compared to many of the other developed countries in the world, the U.S. is actually on the low end of the tax scale.

According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, some of the most recent numbers show that about 30 other developed economies have higher taxes than the United States. In 2014, the U.S. government collected 26 percent of the gross domestic product revenue, which was way below the average of the rest of the world, which is 34.4 percent.

Of the 30 countries included in the report, there were only three economies that had a smaller tax percentage than the United States: South Korea, Chile and Mexico. Denmark leads the list with the highest percentage; a whopping 50.9 percent, and France, Italy, the U.K. and Germany were all over 30 or even 40 percent as well.

So why do U.S. taxpayers complain so much about taxes, if the country is actually towards the bottom of the list? It’s because the U.S. is the only country on the list that doesn’t use a Value Added Tax, or VAT. A VAT helps supplement revenue from other sources, which raises nearly 7 percent of the GDP in these countries. The U.S., on the other hand, has to count on other taxes to supplement its revenue because it does not have a VAT. And that won’t likely change any time soon.

Posted in

Gemlust | Rénee Kubryk

  About Rénee Kubryk Rénee Kubryk has always had a passion for Gems. At a young age Rénee found herself working at a jewelry store owned by her parents. She received her degree in nursing from City University of New York City College and later a Master’s in Human Resources & Organizational Development from the…

Academic Deep Learning | Dr. Karen Walker

Academic Deep Learning | Dr. Karen Walker

Transcript, Academic Deep Learning | Dr. Karen Walker Alan Welcome back. I’m here today with Dr. Karen Murray Walker. She’s the author of the book, The Deep Learning academic success planner. And we’re on the campus of Southern Virginia University. Dr. Walker, welcome to the show. Thank you. So I’d like your background, you know…

Jenny Oaks Baker

Jenny Oaks Baker- Developing Talents

About Jenny Oaks Baker America’s Violinist, Jenny Oaks Baker is a Grammy Nominated, Billboard No. 1 performer and recording artist. She received her Master of Music degree from the renowned Juilliard School in New York City and her Bachelor’s Degree in violin performance from the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. She has performed as…

Shane Greenstein; How the Internet Became Commercial: Patterns in the Deployment of Technology | Shane Greenstein

How the Internet Became Commercial: Patterns in the Deployment of Technology | Shane Greenstein

  About Shane Greenstein Shane Greenstein is a Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard School of Business and is the MBA Class of 1957 Professor of Business Administration. Professor Greenstein is also co-director of the program on the economics of digitization at The National Bureau of Economic Research. Professor Greenstein is the author of…