IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/cpr/ceprdp/13385.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

What Happened to CIT collection? Solving the Rates-Revenues Puzzle

Author

Listed:
  • Nicodème, Gaëtan
  • Caiumi, Antonella
  • Majewski, Ina

Abstract

Despite sharp reductions in corporate income tax (CIT) rates worldwide, CIT revenues have not fallen dramatically in the last two decades. This paper investigates the recent developments in CIT in the European Union, by taking a closer look at the potential driving forces behind this puzzle. Using a unique dataset of national sectoral accounts, we decompose the CIT revenue to GDP ratio for the EU and find that while the decrease in the statutory rates has driven down tax collection, the effect was more than offset by a broadening of the taxable base and a slight increase in the size of the corporate sector. However, this result holds for the period 1995-2015 but not for the last decade where base broadening has not been able to match further cuts in rates.

Suggested Citation

  • Nicodème, Gaëtan & Caiumi, Antonella & Majewski, Ina, 2018. "What Happened to CIT collection? Solving the Rates-Revenues Puzzle," CEPR Discussion Papers 13385, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:13385
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://cepr.org/publications/DP13385
    Download Restriction: CEPR Discussion Papers are free to download for our researchers, subscribers and members. If you fall into one of these categories but have trouble downloading our papers, please contact us at subscribers@cepr.org
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or search for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Clemens Fuest & Andreas Peichl & Sebastian Siegloch, 2018. "Do Higher Corporate Taxes Reduce Wages? Micro Evidence from Germany," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 108(2), pages 393-418, February.
    2. de Mooij, Ruud A & Ederveen, Sjef, 2003. "Taxation and Foreign Direct Investment: A Synthesis of Empirical Research," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 10(6), pages 673-693, November.
    3. Nicodeme, Gaetan, 2001. "Computing effective corporate tax rates: comparisons and results," MPRA Paper 3808, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Lars P. Feld & Jost H. Heckemeyer, 2011. "Fdi And Taxation: A Meta‐Study," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(2), pages 233-272, April.
    5. Arulampalam, Wiji & Devereux, Michael P. & Maffini, Giorgia, 2012. "The direct incidence of corporate income tax on wages," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 56(6), pages 1038-1054.
    6. Ruud Mooij & Gaëtan Nicodème, 2008. "Corporate tax policy and incorporation in the EU," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 15(4), pages 478-498, August.
    7. repec:ces:ifodic:v:6:y:2008:i:1:p:14567168 is not listed on IDEAS
    8. Michael Overesch & Johannes Rincke, 2011. "What Drives Corporate Tax Rates Down? A Reassessment of Globalization, Tax Competition, and Dynamic Adjustment to Shocks," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 113(3), pages 579-602, September.
    9. William C. Randolph, 2006. "International Burdens of the Corporate Income Tax: Working Paper 2006-09," Working Papers 18067, Congressional Budget Office.
    10. European Commission, 2017. "Taxation trends in the European Union: 2017 edition," Taxation trends 2017, Directorate General Taxation and Customs Union, European Commission.
    11. Michael Devereux & Rachel Griffith, 1998. "The taxation of discrete investment choices," IFS Working Papers W98/16, Institute for Fiscal Studies.
    12. Alan J. Auerbach, 2007. "Why Have Corporate Tax Revenues Declined? Another Look," CESifo Economic Studies, CESifo, vol. 53(2), pages 153-171, June.
    13. Martina Lawless & Daire McCoy & Edgar L. W. Morgenroth & Conor M. O”Toole, 2018. "Corporate tax and location choice for multinational firms," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 50(26), pages 2920-2931, June.
    14. Andrews,Donald W. K. & Stock,James H. (ed.), 2005. "Identification and Inference for Econometric Models," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521844413.
    15. Markus Leibrecht & Claudia Hochgatterer, 2012. "Tax Competition As A Cause Of Falling Corporate Income Tax Rates: A Survey Of Empirical Literature," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(4), pages 616-648, September.
    16. Claudius Schmidt-Faber, 2004. "An implicit tax rate for non-financial corporations: Definition and comparison with other tax indicators," Taxation Papers 5, Directorate General Taxation and Customs Union, European Commission, revised Dec 2004.
    17. Jost H. Heckemeyer & Michael Overesch, 2017. "Multinationals profit response to tax differentials: Effect size and shifting channels," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 50(4), pages 965-994, November.
    18. John Shea, 1997. "Instrument Relevance in Multivariate Linear Models: A Simple Measure," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 79(2), pages 348-352, May.
    19. Bräutigam, Rainer & Spengel, Christoph & Stutzenberger, Kathrin, 2017. "The development of corporate tax structures in the European Union from 1998 to 2015 - Qualitative and quantitative analysis," ZEW Discussion Papers 17-034, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    20. repec:dgr:uvatin:20070030 is not listed on IDEAS
    21. Ruud A. De Mooij & Gaëtan J.A. Nicodème & Gaëtan J.A. Nicodeme, 2008. "How Corporate Tax Competition Reduces Personal Tax Revenue," ifo DICE Report, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, vol. 6(01), pages 27-31, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Cláudia Braz & Maria Manuel Campos & Sónia Cabral, 2022. "A micro-level analysis of corporate income taxation in Portugal," Economic Bulletin and Financial Stability Report Articles and Banco de Portugal Economic Studies, Banco de Portugal, Economics and Research Department.
    2. Clemens Fuest & Felix Hugger & Susanne Wildgruber, 2022. "Why Is Corporate Tax Revenue Stable While Tax Rates Fall? Evidence from Firm-Level Data," National Tax Journal, University of Chicago Press, vol. 75(3), pages 481-515.
    3. Jadranka N. Đurović Todorović & Marina S. Đorđević & Milica B. Ristić Cakić, 2022. "Do the Effective Tax Incentives Reduce Tax Revenues? Investigating the Paradox of Corporate Income Tax in Serbia," Journal of Tax Reform, Graduate School of Economics and Management, Ural Federal University, vol. 8(2), pages 108-126.
    4. European Commission, 2018. "Tax Policies in the European Union: 2018 Survey," Taxation Survey 2018, Directorate General Taxation and Customs Union, European Commission.
    5. European Commission, 2019. "Tax Policies in the European Union: 2020 Survey," Taxation Survey 2020, Directorate General Taxation and Customs Union, European Commission.
    6. Victoria J. Perry, 2023. "Pillar 2: tax competition in low‐income countries and substance‐based income exclusion," Fiscal Studies, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 44(1), pages 23-36, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Nils aus dem Moore & Tanja Kasten & Christoph M. Schmidt, 2014. "Do Wages Rise when Corporate Taxes Fall? - Evidence from Germany’s Tax Reform 2000," Ruhr Economic Papers 0532, Rheinisch-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Universität Dortmund, Universität Duisburg-Essen.
    2. Nadja Dwenger & Pia Rattenhuber & Viktor Steiner, 2019. "Sharing the Burden? Empirical Evidence on Corporate Tax Incidence," German Economic Review, Verein für Socialpolitik, vol. 20(4), pages 107-140, November.
    3. repec:zbw:rwirep:0532 is not listed on IDEAS
    4. aus dem Moore, Nils & Kasten, Tanja & Schmidt, Christoph M., 2014. "Do Wages Rise when Corporate Taxes Fall? - Evidence from Germany's Tax Reform 2000," Ruhr Economic Papers 532, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    5. Knaisch, Jonas & Pöschel, Carla, 2021. "Corporate Tax Incidence and Wages: A Meta-Regression Analysis," arqus Discussion Papers in Quantitative Tax Research 262, arqus - Arbeitskreis Quantitative Steuerlehre, revised 2021.
    6. Markus Leibrecht & Claudia Hochgatterer, 2012. "Tax Competition As A Cause Of Falling Corporate Income Tax Rates: A Survey Of Empirical Literature," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(4), pages 616-648, September.
    7. Fabien Candau & Jacques Le Cacheux, 2017. "Corporate Income Tax as a Genuine own Resource," Working papers of CATT hal-01847937, HAL.
    8. Simon Loretz, 2008. "Corporate taxation in the OECD in a wider context," Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press and Oxford Review of Economic Policy Limited, vol. 24(4), pages 639-660, winter.
    9. Fabien Candau & Jacques Le Cacheux, 2018. "Taming Tax Competition with a European Corporate Income Tax," Revue d'économie politique, Dalloz, vol. 128(4), pages 575-611.
    10. Keuschnigg, Christian & Loretz, Simon & Winner, Hannes, 2014. "Tax Competition and Tax Coordination in the European Union: A Survey," Working Papers in Economics 2014-4, University of Salzburg.
    11. Nelly Exbrayat & Benny Geys, 2016. "Economic Integration, Corporate Tax Incidence and Fiscal Compensation," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(11), pages 1792-1811, November.
    12. Bofinger, Peter & Feld, Lars P. & Schmidt, Christoph M. & Schnabel, Isabel & Wieland, Volker, 2018. "Vor wichtigen wirtschaftspolitischen Weichenstellungen. Jahresgutachten 2018/19 [Setting the Right Course for Economic Policy. Annual Report 2018/19]," Annual Economic Reports / Jahresgutachten, German Council of Economic Experts / Sachverständigenrat zur Begutachtung der gesamtwirtschaftlichen Entwicklung, volume 127, number 201819.
    13. Sebastian Beer & Mr. Alexander D Klemm & Ms. Thornton Matheson, 2018. "Tax Spillovers from US Corporate Income Tax Reform," IMF Working Papers 2018/166, International Monetary Fund.
    14. Baptiste Souillard, 2020. "Import Competition And Corporate Tax Avoidance: Evidence From The China Shock," Working Papers ECARES 2020-30, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    15. Fischer, Leonie & Heckemeyer, Jost H. & Spengel, Christoph & Steinbrenner, Daniela, 2021. "Tax policies in a transition to a knowledge-based economy: The effective tax burden of companies and highly skilled labour," ZEW Discussion Papers 21-096, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    16. Johannesen, Niels, 2022. "The global minimum tax," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 212(C).
    17. International Monetary Fund, 2008. "Kingdom of the Netherlands: Netherlands: Selected Issues," IMF Staff Country Reports 2008/172, International Monetary Fund.
    18. Gaëtan Nicodème, 2008. "Corporate Income Tax and Economic Distortions," Working Papers CEB 08-033.RS, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    19. Azémar, Céline & Desbordes, Rodolphe & Wooton, Ian, 2020. "Is international tax competition only about taxes? A market-based perspective," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(4), pages 891-912.
    20. Müller, Raphael & Spengel, Christoph & Vay, Heiko, 2020. "On the determinants and effects of corporate tax transparency: Review of an emerging literature," ZEW Discussion Papers 20-063, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    21. Nadja Dwenger & Viktor Steiner, 2008. "Effective Profit Taxation and the Elasticity of the Corporate Income Tax Base: Evidence from German Corporate Tax Return Data," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 829, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Corporate tax; Implicit tax rate; Tax reforms; Incorporation; European union;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E62 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook - - - Fiscal Policy; Modern Monetary Theory
    • H25 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Business Taxes and Subsidies
    • O52 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Europe

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:13385. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: the person in charge (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.cepr.org .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.