Quote:
Originally Posted by jswinden
Wow, 20% sounds really high, but without knowing the taxing structures it is impossible to tell. Here in the USA we have way too many taxing authorities including local cities, school districts, counties (shires or parishes), states, the federal (national) government, and a few others. Add to that the import/export taxes and fees that are added to the price of goods before we even purchase them, and we might be paying that much too. Some items, like liquor and tobacco, have extra high taxes added, but you don't notice those taxes because they are simply added to the price without designating it as a tax per se. Needless to say I guess there is universal disdain of the tax man (exchequer).
|
20% - the UK VAT range - is middle-of-the-road. There are some lower (I think the lowest is about 16%) and some higher (25%). Overall, our tax burden is pretty similar - it's just distributed in different ways.