IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/zbw/rwirep/202.html

Taxing Human Capital: A Good Idea

Author

Listed:
  • Braun, Christoph

Abstract

This paper studies a Ramsey optimal taxation model with human capital in an infinite-horizon setting. Contrary to Jones, Manuelli, and Rossi (1997), the human capital production function does not include the current stock of human capital as a production factor. As a result, the return to human capital, namely labor income, does not vanish in equilibrium. In a stationary state, the household underinvests in human capital relative to the first best, i.e., education is distorted. Human capital is effectively taxed. The optimal tax scheme prescribes making the cost of education not fully tax-deductible.

Suggested Citation

  • Braun, Christoph, 2010. "Taxing Human Capital: A Good Idea," Ruhr Economic Papers 202, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:rwirep:202
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/45348/1/635642662.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Nicholas Bull, 1993. "When all the optimal dynamic taxes are zero," Working Paper Series / Economic Activity Section 137, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.).
    2. Chari, V V & Christiano, Lawrence J & Kehoe, Patrick J, 1994. "Optimal Fiscal Policy in a Business Cycle Model," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 102(4), pages 617-652, August.
    3. repec:ebl:ecbull:v:5:y:2006:i:5:p:1-8 is not listed on IDEAS
    4. James Davies & John Whalley, 1991. "Taxes and Capital Formation: How Important is Human Capital?," NBER Chapters, in: National Saving and Economic Performance, pages 163-200, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Bas Jacobs & A. Lans Bovenberg, 2011. "Optimal Taxation of Human Capital and the Earnings Function," Journal of Public Economic Theory, Association for Public Economic Theory, vol. 13(6), pages 957-971, December.
    6. Claudia Hermeling & Martin Barbie, 2006. "Optimal Taxation in a Simple Model of Human Capital Accumulation," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 5(5), pages 1-8.
    7. Chamley, Christophe, 1986. "Optimal Taxation of Capital Income in General Equilibrium with Infinite Lives," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 54(3), pages 607-622, May.
    8. Michael J. Boskin, 1975. "Notes on the Tax Treatment of Human Capital," NBER Working Papers 0116, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    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. Christoph Braun, 2010. "Taxing Human Capital: A Good Idea," Ruhr Economic Papers 0202, Rheinisch-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Universität Dortmund, Universität Duisburg-Essen.
    2. Gian Maria Milesi-Ferretti & Nouriel Roubini, 1995. "Growth Effects of Income and Consumption Taxes: Positive and Normative Analysis," Working Papers 95-18, New York University, Leonard N. Stern School of Business, Department of Economics.
    3. Cassou, Steven P. & Lansing, Kevin J., 1998. "Optimal fiscal policy, public capital, and the productivity slowdown," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 22(6), pages 911-935, June.
    4. Dirk Schindler & Hongyan Yang, 2015. "Catalysts for social insurance: education subsidies versus physical capital taxation," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 22(2), pages 274-310, April.
    5. Steve Ambler, 1999. "Les modèles à agent représentatif et la politique de taxation optimale," L'Actualité Economique, Société Canadienne de Science Economique, vol. 75(4), pages 539-557.
    6. Richter, Wolfram F. & Braun, Christoph, 2009. "Efficient Subsidization of Human Capital Accumulation with Overlapping Generations and Endogenous Growth," IZA Discussion Papers 4629, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    7. Bernheim, B. Douglas, 2002. "Taxation and saving," Handbook of Public Economics, in: A. J. Auerbach & M. Feldstein (ed.), Handbook of Public Economics, edition 1, volume 3, chapter 18, pages 1173-1249, Elsevier.
    8. Jang-Ting Guo & Kevin J. Lansing, 1997. "Tax structure and welfare in a model of optimal fiscal policy," Economic Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, issue Q I, pages 11-23.
    9. Nouriel Roubini & Gian Maria Milesi-Ferrett, 1994. "Optimal Taxation of Human and Physical Capital in Endogenous Capital Models," NBER Working Papers 4882, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    10. Hao Li & Gaowang Wang & Jun Yu, 2025. "Revisiting Optimal Capital Taxation with the Spirit of Capitalism," Annals of Economics and Finance, Society for AEF, vol. 26(2), pages 501-524, November.
    11. Vasia Panousi, 2008. "Capital Taxation with Entrepreneurial Risk," 2008 Meeting Papers 36, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    12. Theo Eicher & Stephen Turnovsky & Maria Carme Riera i Prunera, 2003. "Effects of differential taxation on factor accumulation and growth," Working Papers in Economics 98, Universitat de Barcelona. Espai de Recerca en Economia.
    13. Valeria Bonis & Luca Spataro, 2018. "Optimal income taxation and migration," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 25(4), pages 867-882, August.
    14. Biljanovska, Nina & Vardoulakis, Alexandros P., 2019. "Capital taxation with heterogeneous discounting and collateralized borrowing," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 97-109.
    15. Angyridis, Constantine, 2007. "Optimal capital income taxation in a small open economy," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 95(1), pages 73-79, April.
    16. Lance Lochner & Alexander Monge-Naranjo, 2002. "Human Capital Formation with Endogenous Credit Constraints," NBER Working Papers 8815, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    17. Jim Malley & Apostolis Philippopoulos, 1999. "Economic Growth And Endogenous Fiscal Policy: In Search Of A Data Consistent General Equilibrium Model," Working Papers 1999_18, Business School - Economics, University of Glasgow, revised Jan 1998.
    18. Gomez, Manuel A., 2007. "Optimal tax structure in a two-sector model of endogenous growth," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 29(2), pages 305-325, June.
    19. Quadrini, Vincenzo, 2005. "Policy commitment and the welfare gains from capital market liberalization," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(8), pages 1927-1951, November.
    20. Benhabib, Jess & Rustichini, Aldo, 1997. "Optimal Taxes without Commitment," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 77(2), pages 231-259, December.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • H21 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Efficiency; Optimal Taxation
    • I28 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Government Policy
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

    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:zbw:rwirep:202. 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: ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/rwiesde.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.