Wealth tax

A wealth tax, also called a capital tax, equity tax, or net wealth tax, is a tax on someone's holdings of assets or net worth. This includes the total value of personal assets, including cash, bank deposits, real estate, assets in insurance and pension plans. This is mainly focused on rich people.

As of 2017^[update], five of the 36 OECD countries had a personal wealth tax (down from 12 in 1990). Supporters say that wealth taxes can reduce income inequality by making it harder for people to become millionaries and billionaires. Many critics of wealth taxes say that wealth taxes can have a negative economic effect.

References

↑ Wolff, Edward N. (February–March 1996). "Time for a Wealth Tax?". Boston review. Archived from the original on February 12, 2012. Retrieved February 12, 2026.
↑ "Global Revenue Statistics Database". OECD Data Explorer. 2017. Archived from the original on December 9, 2018. Retrieved February 12, 2026.
↑ Neidle, Dan (July 22, 2025). "A UK wealth tax would be an anti-growth policy". Tax Policy Associates. Retrieved July 24, 2025.

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[EWBR2-1] Wolff, Edward N. (February–March 1996). "Time for a Wealth Tax?". Boston review. Archived from the original on February 12, 2012. Retrieved February 12, 2026.

[2] "Global Revenue Statistics Database". OECD Data Explorer. 2017. Archived from the original on December 9, 2018. Retrieved February 12, 2026.

[3] Neidle, Dan (July 22, 2025). "A UK wealth tax would be an anti-growth policy". Tax Policy Associates. Retrieved July 24, 2025.