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Earnings Responses to Social Security Contributions

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  • Michael Neumann

Abstract

This paper exploits discontinuities induced by earnings caps for social security contributions (SSC) in Germany to analyse the effect of SSC on gross labour earnings. Empirical evidence is based on two complementary approaches utilising two administrative data sets. First, employment responses to SSC at the intensive margin are identified by a modified bunching approach that is applied to kinks in the budget set generated by the earnings caps. Second, I exploit an increase ofa regional earnings cap of health and long-term care insurance as a natural experiment. In order to analyse economic incidence a difference-in-differences approach is used to estimate the effects on gross earnings. I find employment responses to be negligible and the burden of SSC to be shared equally between employers and employees. Both results turn out to be robust and are consistent with a competitive labour market model.

Suggested Citation

  • Michael Neumann, 2015. "Earnings Responses to Social Security Contributions," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 1489, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    • Handle: RePEc:diw:diwwpp:dp1489
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Jonathan Deslauriers & Benoit Dostie & Robert Gagné & Jonathan Paré, 2021. "Estimating the impacts of payroll taxes: Evidence from Canadian employer–employee tax data," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 54(4), pages 1609-1637, November.
    2. Müller, Kai-Uwe & Neumann, Michael, 2015. "How reliable are incidence estimates based on cross-sectional distributions? Evidence from simulations and linked employer-employee data," VfS Annual Conference 2015 (Muenster): Economic Development - Theory and Policy 112920, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    3. Andrei Ionut Husman, 2018. "Taxation Of Employees In Romania In 2018. Changes And Its Results On The Country’S Economy," Oradea Journal of Business and Economics, University of Oradea, Faculty of Economics, vol. 3(special), pages 46-55, May.
    4. Antoine Bozio & Thomas Breda & Julien Grenet, 2017. "Incidence and Behavioural Response to Social Security Contributions: An Analysis of Kink Points in France," De Economist, Springer, vol. 165(2), pages 141-163, June.
    5. Nicole Bosch & Maja Micevska-Scharf, 2017. "Who Bears the Burden of Social Security Contributions in the Netherlands? Evidence from Dutch Administrative Data," De Economist, Springer, vol. 165(2), pages 205-224, June.
    6. Kai-Uwe Müller & Michael Neumann, 2017. "Who Bears the Burden of Social Security Contributions in Germany? Evidence from 35 Years of Administrative Data," De Economist, Springer, vol. 165(2), pages 165-179, June.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Social security contributions; tax incidence; labour supply elasticities; labour demand elasticities; bunching;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H22 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Incidence
    • H24 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Personal Income and Other Nonbusiness Taxes and Subsidies
    • J38 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Public Policy

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