IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/cyb/wpaper/2025-1.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Estimation of the Fiscal Elasticities for Cyprus

Author

Listed:
  • Aris A. Avgousti

    (Central Bank of Cyprus)

Abstract

This paper presents updated estimates of short-run elasticities for the fiscal variables that depend upon the economic cycle for Cyprus. First, we construct a ‘policy-neutral’ time-series dataset, adjusting fiscal data for the estimated or assumed impact of discretionary policy measures. Then, for each fiscal variable, we estimate various specifcations using different macro bases and control variables (year dummies, structural breaks, or tax reforms), applying two econometric models (first differences and error correction model) to annual data for the period 1995-2023. In addition, we employ rolling-window regressions to detect possible trends in the fiscal-to-base elasticities. For each fiscal variable, we select the specifcations that satisfy the pre-specifed model-selection criteria and identify the most suitable specification. Based on the estimation results, we propose the use of updated fiscal elasticities for our forecasts. The proposed changes to the fiscal elasticities involve adjustments to the macro bases for three main revenue categories – personal income tax, social security contributions, and value added tax – but most importantly, they generally suggest the use of higher elasticities compared to those previously applied, particularly for revenue from direct taxes (personal and corporate income taxes). The impact of these changes on the June 2024 fiscal projections of the CBC is signifcant. All else equal (i.e. without any changes in judgment), public revenue would rise by 0.1 percent of GDP in 2024, 0.3 percent of GDP in 2025 and 0.7 percent of GDP in 2026. The largest impact would stem from the changes in the elasticities of personal and corporate income taxes, with average annual impacts of 0.12 percent of GDP and 0.10 percent of GDP, respectively. The updated estimates of fiscal elasticities could improve the accuracy of our fiscal projections and provide a clearer understanding of the factors driving government revenue and unemployment-related expenses.

Suggested Citation

  • Aris A. Avgousti, 2025. "Estimation of the Fiscal Elasticities for Cyprus," Working Papers 2025-1, Central Bank of Cyprus.
  • Handle: RePEc:cyb:wpaper:2025-1
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.centralbank.cy/images/media/pdf/2025-01.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Savina Princen & Gilles Mourre & Dario Paternoster & George-Marian Isbasoiu, 2013. "Discretionary tax measures: pattern and impact on tax elasticities," European Economy - Economic Papers 2008 - 2015 499, Directorate General Economic and Financial Affairs (DG ECFIN), European Commission.
    2. Robert Price & Thai-Thanh Dang & Yvan Guillemette, 2014. "New Tax and Expenditure Elasticity Estimates for EU Budget Surveillance," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 1174, OECD Publishing.
    3. Gilles Mourre & George-Marian Isbasoiu & Dario Paternoster & Matteo Salto, 2013. "The cyclically-adjusted budget balance used in the EU fiscal framework: an update," European Economy - Economic Papers 2008 - 2015 478, Directorate General Economic and Financial Affairs (DG ECFIN), European Commission.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Gilles Mourre & Aurélien Poissonnier, 2019. "What Drives the Responsiveness of the Budget Balance to the Business Cycle in EU Countries?," Intereconomics: Review of European Economic Policy, Springer;ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics;Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS), vol. 54(4), pages 237-249, July.
    2. Koester, Gerrit & Priesmeier, Christoph, 2017. "Revenue elasticities in euro area countries," Working Paper Series 1989, European Central Bank.
    3. Siemers Lars-H. & Gebhardt Heinz, 2020. "Die strukturelle Besserung der Länderfinanzen in der Niedrigzinsphase: die trügerische Leichtigkeit des Scheins," Perspektiven der Wirtschaftspolitik, De Gruyter, vol. 21(1), pages 54-78, April.
    4. Nicolas Carnot & Francisco de Castro, 2015. "The Discretionary Fiscal Effort: An Assessment of Fiscal Policy and Its Output Effect," Hacienda Pública Española / Review of Public Economics, IEF, vol. 215(4), pages 63-94, December.
    5. Achim Truger, 2014. "Austerity, cyclical adjustment and the remaining leeway for expansionary fiscal policies in the Euro area," IMK Working Paper 140-2014, IMK at the Hans Boeckler Foundation, Macroeconomic Policy Institute.
    6. Heinz Gebhardt & Lars-H. R. Siemers, 2018. "Zur strukturellen Finanzlage der Länder: eine aktuelle Auswertung und Methodenkritik," Volkswirtschaftliche Diskussionsbeiträge 188-18, Universität Siegen, Fakultät Wirtschaftswissenschaften, Wirtschaftsinformatik und Wirtschaftsrecht.
    7. Tomas Havranek & Zuzana Irsova & Jiri Schwarz, 2016. "Dynamic elasticities of tax revenue: evidence from the Czech Republic," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 48(60), pages 5866-5881, December.
    8. Gilles Mourre & Savina Princen, 2015. "Tax Revenue Elasticities Corrected for Policy Changes in the EU," European Economy - Discussion Papers 018, Directorate General Economic and Financial Affairs (DG ECFIN), European Commission.
    9. Q. Lafféter & M. Pak, 2015. "Tax elasticity to business cycle: an overview of three taxes from 1979 to 2013 in France," Documents de Travail de l'Insee - INSEE Working Papers g2015-08, Institut National de la Statistique et des Etudes Economiques.
    10. Achim Truger, 2015. "Implementing the golden rule for public investment in Europe," Working Paper Reihe der AK Wien - Materialien zu Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft 138, Kammer für Arbeiter und Angestellte für Wien, Abteilung Wirtschaftswissenschaft und Statistik.
    11. European Commission, 2013. "Tax reforms in EU Member States - Tax policy challenges for economic growth and fiscal sustainability – 2013 Report," Taxation Papers 38, Directorate General Taxation and Customs Union, European Commission.
    12. Doris Prammer & Lukas Reiss, 2018. "How to increase fiscal stabilization at the euro area level?," Monetary Policy & the Economy, Oesterreichische Nationalbank (Austrian Central Bank), issue Q2/18, pages 111-131.
    13. Hollmayr, Josef & Kuckuck, Jan, 2018. "Fiscal multipliers of central, state and local government and of the social security funds in Germany: Evidence of a SVAR," Discussion Papers 28/2018, Deutsche Bundesbank.
    14. Tomasz Jędrzejowicz & Kamila Sławińska, 2014. "Shifting from Labor to Consumption Taxes: The Impact on Tax Revenue Volatility," Gospodarka Narodowa. The Polish Journal of Economics, Warsaw School of Economics, issue 6, pages 81-101.
    15. Sean Dougherty & Pietrangelo Biase, 2021. "Who absorbs the shock? An analysis of the fiscal impact of the COVID-19 crisis on different levels of government," International Economics and Economic Policy, Springer, vol. 18(3), pages 517-540, July.
    16. Bernadeta Baran, 2013. "Reguła średniookresowego celu budżetowego w Unii Europejskiej," Gospodarka Narodowa. The Polish Journal of Economics, Warsaw School of Economics, issue 11-12, pages 23-47.
    17. Morris, Richard & Reiss, Lukas, 2020. "A decomposition of structural revenue developments for euro area member states," Working Paper Series 2455, European Central Bank.
    18. Bernd Hayo & Sascha Mierzwa & Umut Unal, 2021. "Estimating Policy-Corrected Long-Term and Short-Term Tax Elasticities for the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom," MAGKS Papers on Economics 202112, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, Department of Economics (Volkswirtschaftliche Abteilung).
    19. Achim TRUGER & Michael NAGEL, 2016. "Austerity, Cyclical Adjustment and How to use the Remaining Leeway for Expansionary Fiscal Policies Within the Current EU Fiscal Framework," Turkish Economic Review, KSP Journals, vol. 3(2), pages 235-255, June.
    20. Christian F. Pfeil & Lars P. Feld, 2024. "Does the Swiss Debt Brake Induce Sound Federal Finances? A Synthetic Control Analysis," Public Finance Review, , vol. 52(1), pages 3-41, January.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Fiscal elasticities; Public revenue; Fiscal Projections; Public fnances;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H68 - Public Economics - - National Budget, Deficit, and Debt - - - Forecasts of Budgets, Deficits, and Debt
    • H30 - Public Economics - - Fiscal Policies and Behavior of Economic Agents - - - General

    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:cyb:wpaper:2025-1. 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: Anna Markidou (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/cbcgvcy.html .

    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.