You can't really compare tax rates between countries like that. Some 20% of households in the USA earn 112000€ or more per year, where as only 6% of house holds in Germany earn 72000€ or more per year.
I think the argument that you're trying to make is that the average wage is higher, and therefore you have to take that into account when doing this comparison.
You're absolutely correct about that, and the linked article I showed does exactly that. It computes the multiple of the average wage at which the top marginal rate kicks in. The U.S. top marginal rate applies only to taxpayers whose wages are 9.3 times the average wage. In Belgium the top marginal rate ensnares workers earning 1.1 times the average, and in the Netherlands 1.4 times. This pattern persists across all peer OECD nations. The US is an outlier in its progressivity.
The article is unfortunately paywalled so I couldn't read it. That ratio is indeed more sensical and interesting. But I think it still misses two points.
First, the distribution of tax payers to different marginal tax rate brackets differ. That is, how many percent of US tax payers actually pay top marginal rate vs how many in Belgium do.
Second, the differences in purchasing power. What does the average income (or the top income for that matter) actually get you in different countries.
bhupy|5 years ago
You're absolutely correct about that, and the linked article I showed does exactly that. It computes the multiple of the average wage at which the top marginal rate kicks in. The U.S. top marginal rate applies only to taxpayers whose wages are 9.3 times the average wage. In Belgium the top marginal rate ensnares workers earning 1.1 times the average, and in the Netherlands 1.4 times. This pattern persists across all peer OECD nations. The US is an outlier in its progressivity.
rapala|5 years ago
First, the distribution of tax payers to different marginal tax rate brackets differ. That is, how many percent of US tax payers actually pay top marginal rate vs how many in Belgium do.
Second, the differences in purchasing power. What does the average income (or the top income for that matter) actually get you in different countries.