Effective Tax Rates

Denmark has the highest rate of income tax for a person earning $100,000, according to an annual survey of effective tax rates by KPMG, an accounting firm. But employee social-security contributions in Denmark are only 0.2%. Once such contributions are taken into account, high earners in several countries, including Belgium, Greece, Germany and France, take home even less than the Danes. Belgium’s government grabs the most from earnings of $100,000: almost 48%. Between 2003 and 2009, the trend was for tax rates on high incomes to decline. But last year, as governments sought to cut deficits, they increased. Also, countries which have suffered natural disasters, like Japan, may introduce temporary levies.