Is Australia really a low-taxing country?

Left-leaning outfits like The Australia Institute have for years argued that Australia is a low-taxing country (for example, here and here).

Robert Carling from the Centre for Independent Studies (CIS) has challenged this view, arguing that the low-taxing claim is misleading and based on flawed comparisons.

When measured properly, Australia’s tax burden is not low—it is around 34–36% of the economy’s effective tax base, placing Australia around the middle or above average among comparable developed countries, according to Carling.

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About the author

Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness. Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.