Die Konvergenz von Steuersystemen: Zur Rolle von Modernisierungs- und Globalisierungsprozessen

Abstract

The paper analyzes convergence patterns in the tax systems of EU and OECD countries. It uses the example of tax policy to discuss the importance of theoretically grounded answers to two questions: What converges? How does it converge? Moreover, the paper presents and interprets specific results of convergence analyses in the area of tax policy. One result is that the convergence of tax structures is conditional upon tax levels. Another result is that the convergence of tax structures becomes clearer if the focus is not on different institutional types of taxes (income, property, sales and payroll) but on the resulting relative tax burdens on labor, capital and consumption. As to the causal interpretation of convergence patterns, the paper warns of the overhasty application of simple "globalization" hypotheses. It suggests that convergence patterns largely reflect processes of tax policy rationalization and modernization that are unrelated to international adjustment pressures.