An Examination of Convergence and Resistance in Global Tax Reform Trends
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Kathryn James
The worldwide rise of the Value-Added Tax (VAT) over the last half-century is emblematic of the paradox in modern tax systems: their remarkable similarity in the face of divergent political, cultural and social systems. However, efforts to introduce VAT-style taxes have frequently been accompanied by fierce localized resistance. The histories of VAT reform in Australia, Canada and the United States encapsulate the tension that arises from a tendency among developed tax systems to converge against frequent and often fierce localized opposition. This tension speaks to a key debate in the public policy and comparative law literature concerning the transferability of policy ideas or legal instruments across jurisdictions. The Article details the history of VAT reform in Australia, Canada and the United States over a period of four decades, 1965-2005, where the global uptake of the VAT was at its highest, but where VAT reform in each jurisdiction was highly controversial. The Article concludes with an assessment of the factors that contribute towards tax policy convergence and localized resistance.
©2011 Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co. KG, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Article
- Introduction
- An Examination of Convergence and Resistance in Global Tax Reform Trends
- The Public Control of Corporate Power: Revisiting the 1909 U.S. Corporate Tax from a Comparative Perspective
- From Mumbai to Shanghai, with a Side Trip to Washington: China, India, and the Future of Progressive Taxation in an Asian-Led World
- The Social Norm of Tipping, Its Correlation with Inequality, and Differences in Tax Treatment Across Countries
- Ordinary People, Necessary Choices: A Comparative Study of Childcare Expenses
- Wedded to the Joint Return: Culture and the Persistence of the Marital Unit in the American Income Tax
- Tax Transplants and Local Culture: A Comparative Study of the Chinese and Canadian GAAR
- Globalization and Modernization as Drivers for Tax Reform in the Socialist Market Economy
- Is Tax Law Culturally Specific? Lessons from the History of Income Tax Law in Mandatory Palestine
- Comparative Taxation and Legal Theory: The Tax Design Case of the Transplant of General Anti-Avoidance Rules
- Tax Levels, Structures, and Reforms: Convergence or Persistence
Articles in the same Issue
- Article
- Introduction
- An Examination of Convergence and Resistance in Global Tax Reform Trends
- The Public Control of Corporate Power: Revisiting the 1909 U.S. Corporate Tax from a Comparative Perspective
- From Mumbai to Shanghai, with a Side Trip to Washington: China, India, and the Future of Progressive Taxation in an Asian-Led World
- The Social Norm of Tipping, Its Correlation with Inequality, and Differences in Tax Treatment Across Countries
- Ordinary People, Necessary Choices: A Comparative Study of Childcare Expenses
- Wedded to the Joint Return: Culture and the Persistence of the Marital Unit in the American Income Tax
- Tax Transplants and Local Culture: A Comparative Study of the Chinese and Canadian GAAR
- Globalization and Modernization as Drivers for Tax Reform in the Socialist Market Economy
- Is Tax Law Culturally Specific? Lessons from the History of Income Tax Law in Mandatory Palestine
- Comparative Taxation and Legal Theory: The Tax Design Case of the Transplant of General Anti-Avoidance Rules
- Tax Levels, Structures, and Reforms: Convergence or Persistence
