What Do Estate Tax Laws in Other Countries Tell Us About the Presidential Candidates’ Proposals?
Under current law, the federal government imposes a 40% estate tax to the extent an individual’s estate exceeds a $5.45 million exemption. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump advocates eliminating the tax. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton previously proposed reducing the exemption to $3.5 million and increasing the tax rate to 45%. Last week, she further proposed increasing the tax rate to 50% to the extent an estate exceeds $10 million, 55% to the extent an estate exceeds $50 million, and 65% to the extent an estate exceeds $500 million.
According to a 2015 Tax Foundation study, the current top 40% federal estate tax rate was the fourth highest amongst the 34 countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) at that time. Japan had the highest top rate, 55%. Spain had the next highest rate behind the U.S., 34%. Chile rounded out the top 10, at 25%. 15 countries imposed no estate tax.
Adopting the Clinton proposal would make the U.S. top estate tax rate 10% higher than any other OECD country’s top rate. Even if we ignore the 65% rate applicable only to estates over $500 million, a 55% top rate would tie the U.S. with Japan for the highest rate. Even a 50% top rate would tie the U.S. with South Korea for the second-highest rate.
What does this tell us? The candidates’ proposals are at the opposite extremes of worldwide estate tax policies. While neither proposal seems likely to pass into law, the divergence underscores the tax policy polarization between the candidates. Rather than “fitting in,” each pushes our nation’s tax policy to an extreme.
There is also a question whether adoption of either policy would serve the proposing candidate well as President. How would Mr. Trump’s disgruntled blue-collar supporters react to estate tax repeal? One also can wonder whether Ms. Clinton’s proposal would motivate more of the wealthiest Americans to surrender their citizenship and move capital out of the U.S., not a result she relishes.
Here is a link to the Tax Foundation estate tax study: http://taxfoundation.org/article/estate-and-inheritance-taxes-around-world
Here are links to recent media coverage regarding the candidates’ estate tax proposals: http://www.wsj.com/articles/hillary-clinton-proposes-65-tax-on-largest-estates-1474559914
http://www.latimes.com/nation/politics/trailguide/la-na-trailguide-updates-1474577545-htmlstory.html