Τax Foundation study: Greece has fourth highest tax rates on working people with children

Wage-earners in Greece with children, the proverbial “middle classes”, continue to be burdened from over-taxation, according to the latest figures – derived from 2019 – by the international research organization “Tax Foundation”, which were presented by the Athens-based Center for Liberal Studies-Markos Dragoumis (KEFiM).

Ominously, among 36 OECD member-states, Greece places an unenviable fourth place for highest taxation of wage-earners with children, with only Turkey, France and Sweden ahead.

Employment-related taxation – including social insurances contributions and indirect taxes, such as VAT – consistently slice away above 37 percent of “take-home” pay in the four countries.

Working people with children fare better in Finland, Italy, Belgium, Spain, Germany, Norway, Austria and Latvia, albeit taxes and social security contributions in the aforementioned countries are still above 30 percent.

Strangely, a working person without children in Greece fares better, with Greece in 14th (worst) place out of 36 surveyed countries, with Belgium sporting the highest taxes on income for single working people.

Economically liberal and socially progressive New Zealand again has the lowest taxes for working people, followed by Chile, where protests recently broke out after an announcement that the government was raising taxes, and Switzerland.

On the more bizarre side, according to the Tax Foundation, Colombia has a negative tax burden.