Taxation in France

:"See Government of France for a wider perspective of French government."Taxation in France is determined by the yearly budget vote by the French Parliament, which determines which kinds of taxes (or quasi-taxes) can be levied and which rates can be applied.

French public and quasi-public budgets can be classified into three categories:
* The budget of the national government (288.8 billion euros forecast in 2005 [http://www.premier-ministre.gouv.fr/information/les_dossiers_actualites_19/budget_etat_pour_2005_141/] );
* The budgets of social security organizations. These are "private" organizations endowed with a mission of public service (even though they behave to a large extent like public administrations);
* The budgets of the various local governments.

It is important to note that the social security budgets are larger than the budget of the national government. The budgets of both the national government and of social security organizations run deficits.

National government

As of 2005, the projected tax revenue was 340 billion euros, before various refunds. "(All percentages below are relative to projected tax revenues for 2005. See [http://www.minefi.gouv.fr/pole_ecofin/finances_Etat/LF/2005/plf/plf2005chiffrescles.pdf the finance law project] )."

The most important taxes are:
* The European Union Value Added Tax (TVA) (sales-tax): 48% of tax revenue;
* The income tax ("impôt sur le revenu"): 16% of tax revenue;
* The tax on corporations: 12% of tax revenue;
* The tax on petrol and fuels (TIPP, "taxe intérieure sur les produits pétroliers"): 6%

The national government also levies a wealth tax, called L'impôt de solidarité sur la fortune. While this tax applies only to the most wealthy of the population, and actually collects very little revenue (2%), it is very controversial. Many people on the political Left consider it a symbol of solidarity, while many on the Right argue that it encourages entrepreneurs to leave France.

Income tax

French income tax is a progressive tax, i.e. the tax rate increases as the amount subject to taxation increases (excluding various rebates etc.) This means that the amount of income earned up to a certain amount "t"₁ is taxed at a rate "r"₁, then the "remaining" money, up to a certain amount "t"₂ is taxed at a rate "r"₂, etc.

ee also

*Copernic tax project
*fr icon list of taxes in France

External links

* [http://www.minefi.gouv.fr/pole_ecofin/finances_Etat/LF/2005/plf/index-b.htm 2005 project of Finance Bill] (French Ministry of Finance)