AGENCIES
The OECD recommended to Spain progress in broadening tax bases, including the complete elimination of the deduction for home purchase and increasing the fight against tax fraud. The agency also asked to review the rules of the SICAV and redistribute the tax burden from labor to indirect taxation (lower employer contributions and raise environmental and IBI ) in order to boost job creation.
“Expanding the tax base income tax that this tax would be in many more equitable and reduce its distortionary impact cases,” says the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said in a report on Spain, which suggests that the recent tax reform government only partially reflects its recommendations , by focusing on income tax and societies.
“ They could do more to prioritize jobs and maintain a fair distribution of the tax burden,” says the OECD, which considers current tax revenue depends heavily on taxes on labor that are less favorable to growth and employment in indirect taxes.
The flat rate is regressive and implies a higher tax for workers with low pay
In this regard, the institution recalled that last March the government introduced a reduction in employer contributions to Social Security through a flat fee of 100 euro month for two years for all permanent contracts signed until the end of the year.
“While the tax is generally reduced, the flat rate is regressive and implies a higher tax for workers low pay, “says the organization, which also notes that ” can not expect such temporary measures are to fully stimulate recruitment or long term investment plans. “
Lower corporate contributions and indirect taxes up
Thus, the OECD believes that the core of a future tax reform should include a permanent reduction in corporate contributions Social Security focused on workers with lower pay , a group in which the need to stimulate job is more urgent and has the greatest elasticity of demand with respect to wages.
To offset lower revenues, the OECD suggests and increase environmental taxes on real estate. “None of them is particularly high in Spain and energy taxes are relatively low (…) These taxes hinder less growth and, in the case of environmental, can increase well-being, “they add.
As for the value added tax (VAT), the Paris-based organization said that, although the tax base and expanded in 2012, continues being “one of the most limited of the OECD economies.”
The OECD recommended that Spain extend the standard rate of VAT eliminating reduced rates , except for goods necessities such as food, which proposes offset a reduction in employers’ contributions to Social Security for workers with lower pay contributions.
Delete limit exemptions and deductions
In addition to raising taxes, the OECD advocates reduce exemptions in VAT, Corporation Tax and Income Tax. The OECD recognizes that tax reform proposal Government includes several measures aimed at that, to expand its tax base by eliminating exemptions for dividends and limiting exemptions for severance.
also highlights the limitation of deductions for contributions to personal pension plans and the creation of other plans for long-term savings. And equating the treatment of capital gains, return of deposits and other capital income.
The OECD calls for the tax credit for home purchase removes all taxpayers
However, the institution warns that “ The Government should strictly control these incentives, as they tend to benefit households with higher incomes and in any case could result in a mere substitution of one instrument for another, rather than increasing the total amount of savings. “
On the other hand, considers necessary to eliminate the tax deduction for home purchase, which could be a cost to the public purse of 1,800 million euros in 2014 .
Along with this, claiming broaden the tax base corporation tax , reducing Also here the deductions and setting a lower single rate for all companies , eliminating special regimes for SMEs.
In addition, the institution calls Government , together with other EU countries, review the treatment of collective investment vehicles, namely the companies receiving capital investment variable ( SICAV ), which are taxed on corporate income tax at a rate of only 1% and strengthen controls to ensure that this instrument is not used to avoid paying taxes .
In this regard, the OECD stresses that combat tax evasion is an effective way to broaden the tax bases and improve acceptance and compliance system by citizenship and as confidence in him.
The OECD considers that changes in Spain to turn the job search going “in the right direction” but its implementation in the autonomous slow because the “passive approach” Public Employment Services, which are to improve efficiency to prevent high unemployment inwhichthe .
The report also highlights that active labor market policies They are only effective , in his view, when based on mutual obligation : the unemployed receive a benefit in return should actively participate in job search
. The document also stresses that the high unemployment is not only the result of the lack of jobs , but also “structural problems” including places, plus a very efficient employment policies , insufficient wage flexibility and high protection for dismissal of permanent contracts against their temporary counterparts.
In addition, the secretary general of the OECD, Angel Gurría , has said that Spain spends only 0.9% of GDP on active labor market policies, while OECD countries spend 1.5 times, a “historic deficit.” So has insisted redouble efforts on active policies and adjust the education system to the labor needs.
The tariff deficit electrical system
In addition, the OECD believes that the regulator should implement models of “transparent” costs when setting regulated prices in the electrical system and must be fulfilled “scrupulously” sector reform .
The international organization blames the “wrong predictions” of the application and the “higher” investment in renewable energy , who “received the highest support across Europe” increased costs since the middle of last decade the electricity tariff deficit , which has resulted in “significant liabilities”.
Therefore, for the electricity reform resulting “effective”, the standard “zero new spending without an equivalent increase in income” must be respected “scrupulously” , the OECD, which advocates policies in the electric field designed “carefully” points to increase “max out” their effectiveness and reduce “the minimum” cost, including tax.
About the bank , the OECD believes that “Spanish banks are well positioned to face analysis of the quality of the assets held by the ECB and subsequent tests “. Note however that the dependence of banks with respect to central bank financing remains high and their balances have a substantial amount of public debt.
No comments:
Post a Comment