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Unit Tax versus Ad Valorem Tax: A Tax Competition Model with Cross-border Shopping

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  • Hikaru Ogawa
  • Hiroshi Aiura

Abstract

Within the framework of spatial tax competition with cross-border shopping, we examine the choice of tax method between ad valorem tax and unit (specific) tax. The paper shows that governments endogenously choose ad valorem tax not because of a classic welfare reason, but because it is a good strategy in competing for mobile customers. Another key finding is that while governments are committed to the ad valorem tax method, the choice is not efficient; Tax-cutting competition becomes more serious when countries adopt ad valorem tax, and competition in ad valorem tax yields smaller payoffs than competition in unit tax.

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  • Hikaru Ogawa & Hiroshi Aiura, 2012. "Unit Tax versus Ad Valorem Tax: A Tax Competition Model with Cross-border Shopping," ERSA conference papers ersa12p428, European Regional Science Association.
    • Handle: RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa12p428
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    Cited by:

    1. Kojun Hamada, 2022. "Commodity tax competition and cross-border shopping in a tripoint model," Asia-Pacific Journal of Regional Science, Springer, vol. 6(2), pages 837-862, June.
    2. Birg, Laura, 2018. "Cross-border or Online - Tax Competition with Mobile Consumers under Destination and Origin Principle," VfS Annual Conference 2018 (Freiburg, Breisgau): Digital Economy 181645, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    3. Hiroshi Aiura & Hikaru Ogawa, 2019. "Indirect taxes in a cross-border shopping model: a monopolistic competition approach," Journal of Economics, Springer, vol. 128(2), pages 147-175, October.
    4. Mutsumi Matsumoto & Hikaru Ogawa, 2022. "Tax Competition and Efficient Fiscal Transfers under Capital and Labor Income Taxes," CIRJE F-Series CIRJE-F-1196, CIRJE, Faculty of Economics, University of Tokyo.
    5. Thomas Eichner & Rüdiger Pethig, 2018. "Self-enforcing capital tax coordination," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 88(7), pages 915-940, September.
    6. Willem Sas, 2017. "Can fiscal equalisation mitigate tax competition? Ad valorem and residence-based taxation in a federation," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 24(5), pages 817-853, September.
    7. Haraguchi Junichi & Ogawa Hikaru, 2018. "Leadership in Tax Competition with Fiscal Equalization Transfers," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 18(3), pages 1-15, July.
    8. David R. Agrawal & David E. Wildasin, 2019. "Sales Taxation, Spatial Agglomeration, and the Internet," CESifo Working Paper Series 7742, CESifo.
    9. Dingwei Gu & Zhiyong Yao & Wen Zhou, 2022. "Proportional Fee vs. Unit Fee: Competition, Welfare, and Incentives," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 70(4), pages 999-1032, December.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • H21 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Efficiency; Optimal Taxation
    • H77 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - Intergovernmental Relations; Federalism
    • L13 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Oligopoly and Other Imperfect Markets
    • R12 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Size and Spatial Distributions of Regional Economic Activity; Interregional Trade (economic geography)

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