The authorities are raising existing taxes, planning new ones and discussing the introduction of “exit taxes” to curb the exodus of wealthy citizens.
The policy of “taxing the rich” has become the subject of intense budget negotiations on both sides of the Atlantic, frankmedia.ru notes with reference to Bloomberg.
Great Britain. In the fall of 2025, it raised taxes on expensive real estate and investment income, and froze income tax thresholds. Britain abandoned a two-century-old exemption for non-doms, which allowed them not to pay taxes on foreign income if it was not imported into the country, and to avoid inheritance tax.
France. During budget negotiations, lawmakers demanded a wealth tax. The reaction of business to the idea was harsh: the head of one of the state investment structures, Nicolas Dufourcq, called wealth taxes “communist”, and billionaire Bernard Arnault said that it would destroy the economy.
Germany. The issue of taxing wealthy citizens has caused friction in the ruling coalition. DBG unions last week called for the reinstatement of a wealth tax that was suspended in 1997, saying it could generate more than 20 billion euros a year.
US. Democrats are pushing initiatives to increase wealth taxes. New York’s new mayor, Zohran Mamdani, is proposing to raise the tax on incomes over $1 million a year by 2 percentage points. California is considering a one-time tax of 5% on net wealth above $1 billion.
Spain, Norway, Switzerland. They are among the few European countries with a net wealth tax. Spain levies it on assets above €700,000 (principal dwellings are excluded), Norway levies it at 1% on net wealth above about 1.9 million kroner and 1.1% above 21.5 million kroner, and Switzerland imposes such taxes at the cantonal level.
Controversial result
Proponents of wealth taxes see them as a necessary measure to combat rising inequality in the face of pressure on public finances and social services. However, they often prove difficult to implement, inefficient or overly resource-intensive. Wealthy taxpayers today are much more mobile.
In addition, net wealth taxes imply regular valuation of assets, which are often illiquid and difficult to assess accurately. In a number of countries, this has led to considerable controversy and administration costs. In the Netherlands, for example, the tax is levied on the assumption that assets generate income even in unprofitable years, which has left the authorities faced with having to refund overpayments.
Another problem is the discrepancy between expected and actual budget revenues. Revenues from wealth taxes are often lower than projected, and the taxes themselves are perceived as a deterrent to investment. The experience of the 1990s shows that in many countries wealth taxes have not generated significant revenues and have not led to systemic economic change.
“Voting with their feet”
Rising tax burdens also accelerate the move of wealthy individuals to jurisdictions with more lenient rules.
Dubai and Abu Dhabi, where there are zero taxes on salaries and bonuses, as well as Monaco and Switzerland are becoming “magnets” for the rich. Italy since 2017 offers wealthy foreigners a fixed tax regime of 100 thousand euros per year on foreign income (later the rate increased to 300 thousand euros).
In the US, there is a similar dynamic between states. Miami benefits from the relocation of residents and companies from New York, while Texas and Florida with zero income tax have become particularly attractive.
These processes are also taking place at the corporate level: business was moved to Texas by Ilon Musk, Goldman Sachs and Chevron.
