The Taxation Of Financial Assets

Taxes affect the degree and efficiency of financial intermediation in many different ways. This paper summarizes the main tax provisions in OECD countries that affect the overall “tax wedge” between pre-tax returns on investments, and the post-tax yield on the savings that finance them. This tax wedge is shown to vary widely, in individual countries, according to the different ways in which savings are channeled through financial markets. The paper then discusses alternative criteria for assessing tax regimes for financial assets, and summarizes recent trends in OECD countries.

The administrative cost of implicit taxes on financial assets - seigniorage, reserve requirements, lending targets, and interest ceilings - is low. But the excess burden that stems from the misallocation of resources is probably a much higher fraction of revenues than that of other taxes.

Presents the results of an analysis of the application of domestic laws and tax treaties to four particular types of instruments: interest rate swaps, financial futures, options to by shares, and bonds issued at a deep discount. Explores the possibility of arriving at consistent treatment of these instruments to provide greater certainty for both tax administrators and the financial markets.

Publisher Description

This publication thoroughly reviews the factual background to global trading, analyses the challenges posed to traditional taxation methods and discusses a range of policy options to tackle the problems.

"The global economic and financial crisis has created important needs for fiscal consolidation. This document analyses potential instruments to raise additional tax revenues from the financial sector. The first section reviews the current policy objectives related to the taxation of the financial sector. The second section sheds some light on the current tax treatment of the financial sector. The third section discusses potential tax instruments to reach the goals. The fourth and fifth section respectively assess the advantages and drawbacks of a Financial Transaction Tax and a Financial Activities Tax."--Editor.

This paper reviews capital taxation issues in Italy based on a comprehensive definition encompassing taxes on income, transactions, and ownership. It discusses options to enhance the neutrality of the capital income tax system, followed by a detailed analysis of the property tax, the inheritance tax, and various transaction taxes. The paper also examines the case for replacing the set of existing taxes on financial and real assets with a single net wealth tax.