What are your country's Tax Types and Tax Rates?

Hi All,
I would like to know if Australia is the most taxed nation on earth. Australia has many taxes, including:

• Income (personal)
• Fringe Benefit (Work Cars etc)
• GST (service tax on everything you buy)
• Local Government
• State Government
• Petrol
• Alcohol
• Cigarettes

to name just a few

Australian Resident Tax Rates
Annual Taxable Income...Tax

• $0 - $6000 ..................Nil
• $6001 - $21600 ........... Nil plus 17c for each $ over $6000
• $21601 - $58000.......... $2652 plus 30c for each $ over $21600
• $58001 - $70000.......... $13572 plus 42c for each $ over $58000
• $70001 and over ......... $18612 plus 47c for each $ over $70000

In addition, above about $13000 there is a Medicare (National Health System)levy of 1.5 cents of taxable income. Also single taxpayers with taxable income over $50,000 and families with taxable income over $100,000 are required to pay the Medicare surcharge of 1% of taxable income if they do not have approved private Hospital Insurance.
A Capital Gains Tax applies on the SALE of an Australian asset over $10,000 or antiques, jewellery over $200.
There is also a 10% GST on everything except non processed Foods and some school materials.
We also have Stamp Duty of 2 to 4 % (State Government) that is paid on things like the sale of cars and houses. The Local Government also claim 'Rates' for us having the privilege of living in their fair cities and they collecting our garbage.

I think I have to work for the first three days a week just to pay my taxes. You may have guessed that I have just done my yearly tax and my accountant has landed me a Bill for the Tax man.



Greg B

Hi Greg, I'm going to do mine this weekend and I will end up with a bill also, though at least my wife only worked 6 months last year before we had our baby girl Lily on Australia Day so that will help.

Be glad you at least live in Queensland and have lower State, Petrol, Alchohol and Ciggie taxes than NSW.

Dear Greg B:

Here's the U. S. 2003 Tax Rates for comparison purposes. The data was obtained from the Internal Revenues Service (IRS) website. Sorry the table gets "garbled" up when I paste here. The link is given below.

https://www.irs.gov/formspubs/article/0,,id=109877,00.html

I give one example below. Take married filing jointly (the typical middle class family).

Over $ 0 But Not Over $14,000 Then $0 + 10.00% Over $ 0.
Over $7,000, Not Over $28,400, Then, $700 + 15% of amount over $7000.
Over $28,400, Not over $68,800, Then, $3910 + 25% of over $28,400.
Over $68,600, Not over $143,500, Then, $14,010 + 28% of over $68,600.
Over 143,500, not over 311,950, Then, $34,926 + 33% of over 143,500.
Over $311,950 not over INFINITY, Then, $90,514.50 + 35% of over 311,950.

The last is the SUPER RICH. They pay the HIGHEST Tax Rate of 35%. The only catch is that this rate is paid on the income over $311,950. But, they also pay a flat $90,514.50 and the 35% over $311,950.

Charmed

P. S. In the U. S. the IRS provides tables to make life easy for the taxpayer. The taxes owed are just read from the tables.

What do taxes pay for?

Not to be a boor, but I see no mention of what taxes pay for. I'll be the 'Odd Man Out' here - As you folks discuss taxes it might be more 'profitable' to include mention of what taxes pay for. Be specific and tell us what you would prefer to 'cut' to lower taxes.

I'd like to see elimination of all taxes. And all related services. Police we don't need. All they do is end up arresting people, making courts and prisons neccessary. Nor do we need roads. Nor do we need politicians (WoW - What a retirement package THEY get...). Eliminate congress (in the US), the office of president and all government departments and programs. And we don't need public schools. We don't need a military - it's all a tax rip off. Government agencies are a waste - we don't need the NSA, the FBI or the CIA. Deep six the FDA - All the FDA does is hinder. Kill off medicare and related programs. Shutter social security - cut the thing off right now, apolgise to those who gave, but really... It's just another tax.

Kill off all the programs and let everyone fend for him/herself.

Marc,

I don't know about that...as a Canuck, I value our health-care system more than anything. Luckily I haven't made any serious doctor calls in my lifetime, but as someone who tends to worry (mostly for no reason at all), it's good to know that I'd be mostly covered if something ever did happen to me. Sure, there are added expenses, but still - I've seen a lot of families (my own included) go through some awful stuff that would have put them in the poorhouse if it weren't for our health-care system.

I'm sure our tax dollars aren't spent as efficiently as they could be - but there are a lot of good things that they do pay for. I'm a recent grad that was blessed enough to not have to pay back student loans, but there are a lot of kids my age coming out of school $40,000 in the hole - not a nice way to start your life...but easier to deal with when it's OSAP (provincial student loan) and not a bank loan. I was lucky that my parents saved for me, and that I got into a co-op program that paid for the rest - not every kid is so lucky.

Infrastructure in many cities is in big need of repair - and so many roadworks are going on in my area this summer - yet another good use of my tax dollars. How would you pay for stuff like that without taxes? Who's responsible for getting that done?

I don't know - I guess I'm the type of person that would rather have them skim it off the top before I even notice it was there. Mind you, this is my first tax year without tuition credits. I've been getting nice little credits from Jean Chretien for the last 5 years (hey, last summer he paid for half of my trip to Europe!) - unfortunately, I don't think Paul Martin is going to be as nice. (Jerk! Haha.)

-R.

Rachel said:

I don't know about that...as a Canuck, I value our health-care system more than anything. Luckily I haven't made any serious doctor calls in my lifetime, but as someone who tends to worry (mostly for no reason at all), it's good to know that I'd be mostly covered if something ever did happen to me. Sure, there are added expenses, but still - I've seen a lot of families (my own included) go through some awful stuff that would have put them in the poorhouse if it weren't for our health-care system.

Click to expand...

Our health care system is rather good, I would say, but flags have been raised over the suggestion of the premiers that there be a federally funded pharmacare program, focusing on drug payments. What about those of us who contribute to a company-sponsored drug plan? Does that render it obsolete? Does the money simply switch from going to the drug plan to the national system or am I now going to be taxed on something I do not need? And I will guarantee you that if this becomes a federal tax and my company-sponsored plan is rendered unnecessary, I will not see a raise in pay to show that I am no longer contributing to the company plan and I will "lose" money as I have a new tax incurred.

Rachel said:

I'm a recent grad that was blessed enough to not have to pay back student loans, but there are a lot of kids my age coming out of school $40,000 in the hole - not a nice way to start your life...but easier to deal with when it's OSAP (provincial student loan) and not a bank loan.

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Did you hear about the guy in Montreal recently who wouldn't come down from a crane as a form of protest regarding high tuition costs? If he thinks we're high, he should try the US. To top it off, not only are our universities subsidized by public tax money, but when we ask how it is being spent, we're told to mind our own business.

Rachel said:

How would you pay for stuff like that without taxes? Who's responsible for getting that done?

Click to expand...

Okay, we've hit upon a big beef of mine....

We keep hearing about reforms in our public sectors. The Auditor General had to get permission to audit Canada Post. The Audtior General found out about gross mispending with Via Rail, Canada Post, sponsorships in Quebec. Our governments idea of "reform" is to throw more money to organziations. That is not reform...reform is reviewing the processes and cutting the waste. Reform is questioning why the top official at Canada Post can submit expense reports without receipts worth millions of dollars over the past few years. Reform is looking at ways to make Toronto clean again without spending millions of dollars over the next 15 years to buy trees that will last, on average, five years (due to pollution, smog, salt, etc.). Reform is looking at why a family of 3 puts out one bag of garbage a week pays the same for garbage collection as a same size family that puts out 5 bags per week.

If my tax dollars are helping to subsidize any aspect of Canadian society, then I, as "investor", have a right to know where my money is going and have a say in how it is being spent.

I understand the "need" for taxes. Yes, it would a Utopian world if taxes were not required, but we are not that world just yet.

If I've crossed over the Political No-No line, I do apologize, but I do find it very disheartening as a tax payer who is years from retirement and I can not even have a say in how my "investment" in our nation can be allocated.

Rachel,

Actually, I was playing devil's advocate. I don't mind paying taxes at all. I don't like what some are used for but I do like what some are used for. I wrote the above because I always see a theme like this develop and it's always one sided - I Hate Taxes - without noting the good they do.

There used to be some heated debate in my immediate family and one day the heat was very high on taxes. I finally chimed in and mentioned my sister Pam who was injured in a car wreck when she was about 22 years old. She is in her early 60's now. They - my mother and siblings - were trashing all the 'welfare' programs - which included medical help for the 'poor'. My sister, a partial quadriplegic, has 'taken' many, many 'government' dollars over the years including 'training' and education, Books for the Blind materials - to name a few. After mentioning all the programs my family had (and are) 'taking advantage of', the 'but those things are important' comments started.

The complainers always want to eliminate programs which they or their immediate family do not immediately 'profit' from.

RCBeyette said:

We keep hearing about reforms in our public sectors. The Auditor General had to get permission to audit Canada Post. The Audtior General found out about gross mispending with Via Rail, Canada Post, sponsorships in Quebec. Our governments idea of "reform" is to throw more money to organziations. That is not reform...reform is reviewing the processes and cutting the waste. Reform is questioning why the top official at Canada Post can submit expense reports without receipts worth millions of dollars over the past few years. Reform is looking at ways to make Toronto clean again without spending millions of dollars over the next 15 years to buy trees that will last, on average, five years (due to pollution, smog, salt, etc.).

Click to expand...

Sadly, there is fraud and abuse and waste and stupidity and bad management in every business and government is, alas, a business. As I peruse the threads, much of the conversation is about the same things but in the 'business world'.

Reform is looking at why a family of 3 puts out one bag of garbage a week pays the same for garbage collection as a same size family that puts out 5 bags per week.

Click to expand...

This tickled me. Where I live the collection is privatized but it's pretty much a flat fee thing. Living alone, I don't have much garbage. A 30 gallon (US) can every 2 to 4 weeks in the summer and 1 every 4 to 6 weeks in the winter (I burn my paper offage in the fireplace in the winter). A nearby community sells stickers (local government private contract rule). You put a can out and it has to have that week's sticker. Two cans? A sticker on each. Something large like a water heater or couch, special sticker. You buy stickers. Different city governments required different things from the contractor.

But - it tickled me because long ago I simply stopped the service completely. Now when I go to the grocery I drop off my trash in their bin outside the door. It's always a rather small bag and a few plastic bottles and such. Saves me US$600 a year, and since I have to go to the grocery regularly, it's easy. Boy - Am I a cheapskate.

Charmed got the IRS stuff, but left out a whole lot of other taxes. And these will depend a lot on what state you live in.

Property tax (real estate)
Property tax (personal)
Taxes for your fire district
Taxes for your sanitary district
Taxes for your school district
Gas tax
Cigarette tax
Alcohol tax
State tax
Local tax
Marijuana tax stamps (just had to throw that one in )
Federal excise taxes
Just look at your phone bill and see how many added taxes there are.

Anyway, I am thrilled to death to be taxed. It means that I am working, making money and free (relative definition)

Our state or district provides trash drop off sites for rural residents (recycling centers) where we can take all of our trash except for trees and cars. I don't mind having that 100 dollars added to my real estate taxes each year. That's less than $10/month and I have only to drive 2 1/2 miles to get there. School taxes? Not a problem. I can name at least 10 university systems within driving distance from my house. Two of those would accept my children and I'd never have to pay a dime of tuition just because they want to balance out their racial distribution! Our elementary and high school systems suck the big one, but nobody can fault our college and university systems. Do I mind paying taxes, nope. I just continue to push for improvements in our lower levels.

Our median income family income when I moved here was about 21,000. I think that should have gone up since then but I am not sure. Believe me when I say that I felt lucky to have a job that put me well above those figures, I'll pay the tax.

But, on the other hand, it certainly does bother me that I drive past the "projects" (who ever heard of a town of 3600 having projects? or two sets like we do?) and every one of those duplexes looks like animals live there. No maintenance, parking on the yard because people don't want to park their 3rd or 4th car in the parking lot? 3rd or 4th car, heck, I only have 2 because my son is old enough to start driving and the one I bought for him is 10 years old. Mine is 7. I drove by the projects and there was a brand new VW cabriolet (sp?) a Lexus that couldn't have been more than 3 years old. Two Escalades and half a dozen 2004 Camrys, Altimas and Accords. No fooling, the oldest car there wasn't more than 3-4 years old. Now, that is what I don't like about our tax system. We all need dependable transportation, but sheesh, an Escalade? There needs to be some accounting for where tax money is being spent. It certainly is not on healthy food for the children in those neighborhoods, or books for them to read. Oh, but they all have cable TV, something my children don't have the luxery of.

Nope, I do not have a problem paying taxes, and I don't even mind that part of that is spent on welfare programs, I just believe that we should oversee the program a little better.

OK, I'm coming down off the soapbox before I slip and fall.

Taxes are a given of life, get over it.

I don't care much for how my money is used sometimes, but what are you going to do? I guess we could get thrown in jail for not paying taxes and let the rest of the taxpayers pay for my stay!!!!

We've had a lot of increases here in MI, especially after our new gov took office. I would like to see where the money goes {whether I agree or not}. We always hear about how bad our schools and roads are, but isn't that what the lottery and casinos were going to help fund???? I guess since I don't participate in either I shouldn't complain, I voted against them anyway.