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    Who pays the most income tax in the world?

    Yahoo Finance Canada•March 5, 2014
    • <b>9. Finland</b> <br>Highest income tax rate: 49.2% <br>Average 2010 income: $49,000 <br><br>Finland’s current marginal rate of 49.2 percent comes into effect at $91,000. The country has been reducing its top marginal rate from 53.5 percent in 2004 to put more money into the pockets of households in order to fight the effects of inflation.  <br><br>Municipal tax rates are also significant in Finland — varying between 16.25 percent and 21.5 percent. If an individual belongs to a Finnish church, then a church tax of 1 percent to 2 percent may also be due. Workers have to pay additional social security taxes like unemployment and pension insurance premiums. Other taxes include property tax, gift tax and tax on interest as well as a capital gains tax of 28 percent.  <br><br>Finland’s export-driven economy has been threatened by Europe’s financial crisis. The country could fall into a recession this year after the GDP forecast for 2012 was slashed to 0.4 percent from 1.8 percent. The government announced plans in March to increase revenues by <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/22/us-finland-government-idUSBRE82L17520120322">$1.98 billion via tax hikes</a> by 2015. The measures include income tax hikes for high-earners with annual incomes or pensions of more than $132,000, as well as those with inheritances in excess of $1.3 million.  <br><br>Pictured: Street in Helsinki.
    • <b>5. (Tied) United Kingdom</b> <br>Highest income tax rate: 50% <br>Average 2010 income: $52,320  <br><br>The U.K. increased its highest tax rate by 10 percentage points in 2010 to 50 percent, joining the ranks of only three other countries with such a high marginal rate. In March, the government backtracked and cut the tax band for the <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/21/us-britain-budget-idUSBRE82K0HP20120321">highest earners to 45 percent</a>, effective from April 2013.  <br><br>As part of the reforms, the government also raised the income tax threshold to $14,300, taking more poorly paid people out of the tax net, while introducing a new stamp duty of 7 percent on the sale of property worth more than $3.24 million.  <br><br>Britain’s top marginal tax rate kicks in at an income of $231,000. Although 50 percent is the current top rate of tax, the phasing out of personal allowances on income over $160,000 can result in a marginal tax rate of 60 percent. Workers have to pay a social security tax of 12 percent, which rises 2 percent on earnings above $1,259 per week. The country’s capital gains tax also ranges from 18 percent to 28 percent. <br><br>Britain’s tax debate was further fueled last month when Treasury data revealed that 6 percent of the country’s<a href="http://uk.reuters.com/article/2012/04/16/uk-britain-tax-idUKBRE83E0KZ20120416"> wealthiest people used tax reliefs to pay less</a> than 10 percent tax in the 2010-11 financial year. That’s less than half the level paid by the average Briton. In response, the government proposed plans to cap tax relief on charitable donations to 25 percent of earnings, which <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2012/apr/15/charity-tax-relief-plans-philanthropists">charities and philanthropists </a>warn will discourage people from giving.  <br><br>Pictured left: Street in London
    • <b>5. (Tied) Japan</b> <br>Highest income tax rate: 50% <br> Average 2010 income: $53,200  <br><br>Japan is the only Asian country to make the list of the top 10. Its top tax rate of 50 percent is more than double Asia’s average rate of 23 percent.  <br><br>The country’s highest income tax rate is broken into two parts with a marginal rate of 40 percent, which comes into effect at around $217,000, plus an additional 10 percent municipal tax. Social security taxes range from 0.6 percent for employment insurance to 5 percent for health insurance capped at $700 a month. With Japan’s rapidly aging society, those 40 and over are also required to pay a nursing care insurance of 0.8 percent, capped at $110 a month. Other notable taxes include capital gains for stock transactions at 20 percent.  <br><br>Japan’s tax revenue is the fifth lowest among OECD members, and the country has been dealing with its growing debt problems. Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda — Japan’s sixth leader in the past five years — has seen his popularity plummet in opinion polls after proposing plans to <a href="http://uk.reuters.com/article/2012/04/10/uk-japan-politics-showdown-idUKBRE83915H20120410">double the country’s sales tax</a> to 10 percent in 2014. In 2011, the <a href="http://www.oecd.org/document/21/0,3746,en_2649_34533_47426581_1_1_1_1,00.html">tax burden for all Japanese families</a> increased due to higher employee and employer social security contributions and a cut in tax allowances related to children, according to the OECD.  <br><br>Pictured: Ueno Station in Tokyo
    • <b>5. (Tied) Belgium</b> <br>Highest income tax rate: 50% <br>Average 2010 income: $52,700<br><br>Belgium’s highest tax rate of 50 percent is 5 percentage points higher than the average for Western Europe, which has the highest personal tax rates of any region globally.  <br><br>The highest marginal tax rate kicks in at $46,900 of income. The country’s employee social security rate is 13 percent with employer contributions at 35 percent. Municipal taxes can be up to 11 percent of income, while nonresidents pay a fixed 7 percent rate. Capital gains tax is either 16.5 percent or 33 percent, though taxpayers can get some exemptions. For expatriates, if an executive travels 25 percent of their time on business, then the top marginal tax rate can be reduced to 40 percent of income.  <br><br>Belgians have the <a href="http://www.oecd.org/document/55/0,3746,en_2649_34533_47422071_1_1_1_1,00.html">highest tax and social security burden</a>, according to a recent OECD study. In 2011, single taxpayers with an average income took home less than 45 percent of what they cost their employer. Taxpayers at higher earnings took home less than 40 percent. According to the study, the overall tax burden increased for all types of households in the country in 2011. <br><br>Pictured: Grote Markt in Brussels
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    5. (Tied) United Kingdom Highest income tax rate: 50% Average 2010 income: $52,320 The U.K. increased its highest tax rate by 10 percentage points in 2010 to 50 percent, joining the ranks of only three other countries with such a high marginal rate. In March, the government backtracked and cut the tax band for the highest earners to 45 percent, effective from April 2013. As part of the reforms, the government also raised the income tax threshold to $14,300, taking more poorly paid people out of the tax net, while introducing a new stamp duty of 7 percent on the sale of property worth more than $3.24 million. Britain’s top marginal tax rate kicks in at an income of $231,000. Although 50 percent is the current top rate of tax, the phasing out of personal allowances on income over $160,000 can result in a marginal tax rate of 60 percent. Workers have to pay a social security tax of 12 percent, which rises 2 percent on earnings above $1,259 per week. The country’s capital gains tax also ranges from 18 percent to 28 percent. Britain’s tax debate was further fueled last month when Treasury data revealed that 6 percent of the country’s wealthiest people used tax reliefs to pay less than 10 percent tax in the 2010-11 financial year. That’s less than half the level paid by the average Briton. In response, the government proposed plans to cap tax relief on charitable donations to 25 percent of earnings, which charities and philanthropists warn will discourage people from giving. Pictured left: Street in London Photo: VisitBritain | Britain on View | Getty Images

    5. (Tied) United Kingdom
    Highest income tax rate: 50%
    Average 2010 income: $52,320

    The U.K. increased its highest tax rate by 10 percentage points in 2010 to 50 percent, joining the ranks of only three other countries with such a high marginal rate. In March, the government backtracked and cut the tax band for the highest earners to 45 percent, effective from April 2013.

    As part of the reforms, the government also raised the income tax threshold to $14,300, taking more poorly paid people out of the tax net, while introducing a new stamp duty of 7 percent on the sale of property worth more than $3.24 million.

    Britain’s top marginal tax rate kicks in at an income of $231,000. Although 50 percent is the current top rate of tax, the phasing out of personal allowances on income over $160,000 can result in a marginal tax rate of 60 percent. Workers have to pay a social security tax of 12 percent, which rises 2 percent on earnings above $1,259 per week. The country’s capital gains tax also ranges from 18 percent to 28 percent.

    Britain’s tax debate was further fueled last month when Treasury data revealed that 6 percent of the country’s wealthiest people used tax reliefs to pay less than 10 percent tax in the 2010-11 financial year. That’s less than half the level paid by the average Briton. In response, the government proposed plans to cap tax relief on charitable donations to 25 percent of earnings, which charities and philanthropists warn will discourage people from giving.

    Pictured left: Street in London

    Rising public debt and elections in Europe and the U.S. have again raised the issue of taxes, one that's always hotly debated. Canadians, for example, are fond of moaning over their tax rate, which they regard as one of the highest in the world." But is it true? Click through to find out the 10 countries with the highest tax rates, according to the accounting firm KPMG.