The Construction and Review of Progressive Tax in Taiwan

• Main Authors: Yu-TingTsai, 蔡育庭
• Other Authors: Ko-Chung ko
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2010
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/23191503951816530110

碩士 === 國立成功大學 === 法律學研究所 === 98 === Tax is an important income for the survival of a country, and is the most stable financial support for the welfare state. Among the various types of taxes, progressive tax is often considered to have the Robin Hood effect, which redistributes personal wealth in order to adjust the unequal economic status of people and achieve social equity. Generally speaking, progressive tax used in direct taxes, where people with more income or property pay a higher percentage of it in tax than do those with less income and property. But as time passed by, more and more people turned to doubt that the progressive tax is not so fair. The legislators also gradually removed some norms of progressive tax rate. Therefore, the implement of progressive tax in our country is facing enormous challenges. As a result, we need to re-explore the theory of progressive tax and review its practice in our country in order to check our tax rate system now is fair or not. The thesis focuses on progressive taxation. From the viewpoint of economics, finance, and tax law, we understand the relevance between progressive tax and tax equality. Furthermore, it clarifies that progressive tax is raised from the welfare state principle not from ability-to-pay principle, and proportion tax can also make people pay taxes equal. Thus, progressive tax is not the only way to reach tax equity. In other words, implementing progressive tax or not, should be according to people’s willingness to be chosen. And after consolidated judgment, now people still believe that progressive tax can reach the goal of tax equity and social equity, so its necessity in our country cannot be easily denied. Additionally, the thesis wants to talk about our progressive tax norms for Constitutional Review. The examination found that most of the progressive tax norms in Individual income tax, Land value increment tax and Land value tax do not excessive violate people's right to life, and right to own property, also comply with the principle of equality. Therefore, our progressive tax norms in pursuit of will-distributed-wealth and equalization of land rights should be considered appropriate. However, people gradually lost confidence in progressive tax. The main reason is not the progressive tax rate but the tax base. Consequently, reform the tax base rather than make up the defects of the progressive tax rate is the key to eliminate tax inequity in our country. Moreover, the thesis would like to review the feasibility of the progressive tax rate applied to consumption taxes. However, calculating total consumption number of each person and applying progressive tax rate needs many auditing administrative costs, so that it is very difficult in practice. On the premise of levying consumption taxes indirectly on the sellers, deal with different goods in different consumption tax rate is the most probable way to make people pay consumption taxes according to their ability, which also called progressive consumption tax. To be specific, the thesis takes the Business tax of our country for example, and recommends that the daily necessities should be tax-free, and increase the tax rate for luxury goods in order to promote tax fairness. Though, this tax reform program might require other measures to cooperate. Finally, the thesis wants to intensify that the whole tax system of our country have many problems, thus legislators should adjust them into tax equity as quickly as possible. In this way, our nation may be able to convince people to accept the duties of paying taxes, so as to achieve the ideal of social equity and the will-distributed-wealth country.