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Capital income taxation and the Atkinson–Stiglitz theorem

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  • Gahvari, Firouz
  • Micheletto, Luca

Abstract

Accounting for the role of financial system and money holdings in an optimal nonlinear income tax model, we argue that capital income taxation is a non-redundant policy tool even if individual preferences are separable between leisure and other goods.

Suggested Citation

  • Gahvari, Firouz & Micheletto, Luca, 2016. "Capital income taxation and the Atkinson–Stiglitz theorem," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 147(C), pages 86-89.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolet:v:147:y:2016:i:c:p:86-89
    DOI: 10.1016/j.econlet.2016.08.021
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Robin Boadway & Maurice Marchand & Pierre Pestieau, 2000. "Redistribution with Unobservable Bequests: A Case for Taxing Capital Income," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 102(2), pages 253-267, June.
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    6. Piketty, Thomas & Saez, Emmanuel, 2012. "A Theory of Optimal Capital Taxation," CEPR Discussion Papers 8946, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
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    9. Gahvari, Firouz & Micheletto, Luca, 2014. "The Friedman rule in an overlapping-generations model with nonlinear taxation and income misreporting," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 119(C), pages 10-23.
    10. Sören Blomquist & Luca Micheletto, 2008. "Age‐related Optimal Income Taxation," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 110(1), pages 45-71, March.
    11. Joseph E. Stiglitz, 2015. "In Praise of Frank Ramsey's Contribution to the Theory of Taxation," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 0(583), pages 235-268, March.
    12. Cremer, Helmuth & Pestieau, Pierre & Rochet, Jean-Charles, 2003. "Capital income taxation when inherited wealth is not observable," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(11), pages 2475-2490, October.
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    14. Vidar Christiansen & Matti Tuomala, 2008. "On taxing capital income with income shifting," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 15(4), pages 527-545, August.
    15. Thomas Aronsson & Tomas Sjögren & Torbjörn Dalin, 2009. "Optimal taxation and redistribution in an OLG model with unemployment," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 16(2), pages 198-218, April.
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Spencer Bastani & Sebastian Koehne, 2024. "How Should Consumption Be Taxed?," FinanzArchiv: Public Finance Analysis, Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 80(3), pages 259-302.
    2. Torben M. Andersen, 2020. "Taxation of capital income in overlapping generations economies," Journal of Public Economic Theory, Association for Public Economic Theory, vol. 22(5), pages 1245-1261, September.
    3. Hellwig, Christian & Werquin, Nicolas, 2022. "Using Consumption Data to Derive Optimal Income and Capital Tax Rates," TSE Working Papers 22-1284, Toulouse School of Economics (TSE), revised Jan 2026.
    4. Claude Crampes & Norbert Ladoux & Jean‐Marie Lozachmeur, 2024. "Pricing energy consumption and residential energy‐efficiency investment: An optimal tax approach," Journal of Public Economic Theory, Association for Public Economic Theory, vol. 26(1), February.
    5. van Langenhove, Christophe & Lorenz, Jan & Schulz-Gebhard, Jan, 2026. "Wealth taxation, capital gains taxation and the inequality-mobility trade-off," BERG Working Paper Series 211, Bamberg University, Bamberg Economic Research Group.
    6. Laurence JACQUET & Etienne LEHMANN, 2021. "How to Tax Different Incomes?," Thema Working Papers 2021-19, THEMA (Théorie Economique, Modélisation et Applications), CY Cergy-Paris University, ESSEC and CNRS.
    7. Bastani, Spencer & Karlsson, Kristina & Kolsrud, Jonas & Waldenström, Daniel, 2024. "The Capital Advantage: Comparing Returns to Ability in the Labor and Capital Markets," Working Papers in Economics and Statistics 1/2024, Linnaeus University, School of Business and Economics, Department of Economics and Statistics.
    8. Robin Boadway & Kevin Spiritus, 2025. "Optimal taxation of normal and excess returns to risky assets," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 127(2), pages 366-389, April.
    9. Spencer Bastani & Daniel Waldenström, 2020. "The Ability Gradient in Bunching," CESifo Working Paper Series 8233, CESifo.
    10. Bastani, Spencer & Karlsson, Kristina & Waldenström, Daniel, 2023. "The different returns to cognitive ability in the labor and capital markets," Working Paper Series 2023:8, IFAU - Institute for Evaluation of Labour Market and Education Policy.
    11. Matthew Greenblatt, 2020. "In-kind transfers and home production," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 18(4), pages 1189-1211, December.
    12. Spencer Bastani & Firouz Gahvari & Luca Micheletto, 2023. "Nonlinear taxation of income and education in the presence of income‐misreporting," Journal of Public Economic Theory, Association for Public Economic Theory, vol. 25(4), pages 679-726, August.
    13. Spencer Bastani & Daniel Waldenström, 2020. "How Should Capital Be Taxed?," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 34(4), pages 812-846, September.
    14. Antoine Ferey & Benjamin B. Lockwood & Dmitry Taubinsky, 2024. "Sufficient Statistics for Nonlinear Tax Systems with General Across-Income Heterogeneity," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 114(10), pages 3206-3249, October.
    15. Eddy Zanoutene, 2023. "Scale‐dependent and risky returns to savings: Consequences for optimal capital taxation," Journal of Public Economic Theory, Association for Public Economic Theory, vol. 25(3), pages 532-569, June.
    16. Spiritus, Kevin & Lehmann, Etienne & Renes, Sander & Zoutman, Floris T., 2025. "Optimal taxation with multiple incomes and types," Theoretical Economics, Econometric Society, vol. 20(2), May.

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    JEL classification:

    • H21 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Efficiency; Optimal Taxation

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