Consumption Tax Trends 2008
VAT/GST and Excise Rates, Trends and Administration Issues

This publication presents information about VAT/GST and excise duty rates in OECD member countries as well as information about indirect tax topics such as international aspects of VAT development and application of VAT to small and medium-size enterprises. It also describes a range of taxation provisions in OECD member countries, such as the taxation of motor vehicles, tobacco and alcoholic beverages. This edition’s special feature describes the way VAT is implemented in three significant non-OECD economies: China, Russia and India.
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Consumption Tax Topics
Value added tax (VAT), which is also called Goods and Services Tax (GST) in some countries, has, for many years, demonstrated its capacity to raise tax revenue in a neutral and transparent manner. More than 140 countries (Annex 2), including major non-OECD economies such as China, India and Russia, have adopted this method of taxation and it is now the most widespread general tax on consumption. Since 2000, following the introduction of GST in Australia, 29 of the 30 OECD member countries have a VAT system in place, while the United States continues to deploy retail sales taxes at the state level (and below), rather than apply a federal consumption tax.
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