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The Australian Tax‐Transfer System: Architecture and Outcomes

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  • PETER WHITEFORD

Abstract

This article evaluates the Australian tax-transfer system in an international comparative perspective, discussing the distributional profile of Australian transfers compared with those in other Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development countries, and assessing the efficiency and effectiveness of the Australian system in terms of impacts on income inequality and providing assistance to poor households.

Suggested Citation

  • Peter Whiteford, 2010. "The Australian Tax‐Transfer System: Architecture and Outcomes," The Economic Record, The Economic Society of Australia, vol. 86(275), pages 528-544, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:ecorec:v:86:y:2010:i:275:p:528-544
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1111/j.1475-4932.2010.00634.x
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Deborah A. Cobb-Clark & Anna Zhu, 2017. "Childhood homelessness and adult employment: the role of education, incarceration, and welfare receipt," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 30(3), pages 893-924, July.
    3. Gregory Clark & Andrew Leigh & Mike Pottenger, 2017. "Immobile Australia: Surnames show Strong Status Persistence, 1870-2017," CEH Discussion Papers 07, Centre for Economic History, Research School of Economics, Australian National University.
    4. Francisco Azpitarte, 2014. "Was Pro-Poor Economic Growth in Australia for the Income-Poor? And for the Multidimensionally-Poor?," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 117(3), pages 871-905, July.
    5. Melisa Bubonya & Deborah A. Cobb-Clark & Mark Wooden, 2017. "Job loss and the mental health of spouses and adolescent children," IZA Journal of Labor Economics, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 6(1), pages 1-27, December.
    6. Cobb-Clark, Deborah A. & Herault, Nicolas & Scutella, Rosanna & Tseng, Yi-Ping, 2016. "A journey home: What drives how long people are homeless?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 91(C), pages 57-72.
    7. Gunasinghe, Chandika & Selvanathan, E.A. & Naranpanawa, Athula & Forster, John, 2020. "The impact of fiscal shocks on real GDP and income inequality: What do Australian data say?," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 42(2), pages 250-270.
    8. Gerry Redmond & Peter Whiteford, 2011. "Middle class welfare in Australia: How has the distribution of cash benefits changed since the 1980s?," Australian Journal of Labour Economics (AJLE), Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC), Curtin Business School, vol. 14(2), pages 81-102.
    9. Clark, Gregory & Leigh, Andrew & Pottenger, Mike, 2020. "Frontiers of mobility: Was Australia 1870–2017 a more socially mobile society than England?," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    10. Caminada, Koen & Goudswaard, Kees & Wang, Chen, 2012. "Disentangling income inequality and the redistributive effect of taxes and transfers in 20 LIS countries over time," MPRA Paper 42350, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    11. Bubonya, Melisa & Cobb-Clark, Deborah A., 2021. "Pathways of Disadvantage: Unpacking the Intergenerational Correlation in Welfare," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    12. Nicolas Herault & Francisco Azpitarte, 2014. "Recent Trends in Income Redistribution in Australia: Can Changes in the Tax-Transfer System Account for the Decline in Redistribution?," Melbourne Institute Working Paper Series wp2014n02, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, The University of Melbourne.
    13. Chung Tran & Nabeeh Zakariyya, 2019. "Tax Progressivity in Australia: Facts, Measurements and Estimates," ANU Working Papers in Economics and Econometrics 2019-667, Australian National University, College of Business and Economics, School of Economics.
    14. Whelan, Stephen & Atalay, Kadir & Hayward, Richard Donald, 2018. "Asset portfolio retirement decisions: the role of the tax and transfer system," SocArXiv akj8w, Center for Open Science.
    15. Cobb-Clark, Deborah A. & Dahmann, Sarah C. & Gielen, Anne C., 2020. "The Intergenerational Effects of Requiring Unemployment Benefit Recipients to Engage in Non-Search Activities," IZA Discussion Papers 13618, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    16. Vanesa Jorda & Jose M. Alonso, 2020. "What works to mitigate and reduce relative (and absolute) inequality?: A systematic review," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2020-152, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    17. Koen Caminada & Kees Goudswaard & Chen Wang & Jinxian Wang, 2019. "Income Inequality and Fiscal Redistribution in 31 Countries After the Crisis," Comparative Economic Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Association for Comparative Economic Studies, vol. 61(1), pages 119-148, March.
    18. eccleston, richard & Verdouw, Julia & Flanagan, Kathleen & Warren, Neil & Duncan, Alan & Ong, Rachel & Whelan, Stephen & Atalay, Kadir & Hayward, Richard Donald, 2018. "Pathways to housing tax reform," SocArXiv 8xrbe, Center for Open Science.
    19. Chung Tran & Nabeeh Zakariyya, 2021. "Tax Progressivity in Australia: Facts, Measurements and Estimates†," The Economic Record, The Economic Society of Australia, vol. 97(316), pages 45-77, March.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    H24 ; H55 ; I38 ;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H24 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Personal Income and Other Nonbusiness Taxes and Subsidies
    • H55 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Social Security and Public Pensions
    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs

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