Optimal labor income taxation and asset distribution in an economy with no insurance market and extensive labor supply responses

Takao Kataoka () and Yoshihiro Takamatsu ()
Additional contact information
Takao Kataoka: Waseda University
Yoshihiro Takamatsu: Meiji Gakuin University

International Tax and Public Finance, 2024, vol. 31, issue 6, No 7, 1639 pages

Abstract: Abstract We examine the effects of stationary nonlinear labor income tax rules in a dynamic economy, considering extensive marginal labor-leisure choices and uninsured idiosyncratic shocks on labor productivity and labor disutility. The labor income tax rule has significant implications for households’ savings behavior and asset distribution over the long-run. We derive a optimal stationary tax rules as a natural extension of optimal participation tax rule in the static models. Through numerical simulations, two main findings emerge: (i) The current optimal tax rule, aimed at maximizing welfare based on the present asset distribution level, supports in-work benefits for low-income workers as a static extensive margin model. While this policy temporarily enhances welfare, it leads to a decline in capital accumulation and a decrease in average utility flow over time. (ii) The long-run optimal tax rule, optimizing welfare when the asset distribution reaches a stationary state, exhibits less progressivity and initially worsens welfare temporarily. However, it eventually improves the average utility flow in the long-run. The long-term consequences of households’ saving behavior and asset distribution mitigate the attractiveness of in-work benefit policies. By shedding light on the trade-offs between short-term welfare gains and long-term utility improvements, this study provides insights into designing effective labor income tax policies in a dynamic economic context.

Keywords: Optimal labor income taxation; Asset distribution; Extensive labor margin; In-work benefits (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: E21 H21 H24 I38 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10797-023-09819-4 Abstract (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:kap:itaxpf:v:31:y:2024:i:6:d:10.1007_s10797-023-09819-4

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.springer. ... ce/journal/10797/PS2

DOI: 10.1007/s10797-023-09819-4

Access Statistics for this article

International Tax and Public Finance is currently edited by Ronald B. Davies and Kimberly Scharf

More articles in International Tax and Public Finance from Springer, International Institute of Public Finance Contact information at EDIRC.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().