"Rich Norwegians flee as wealth tax bites"

Brendan Burgess

Brendan Burgess

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Interesting FT article

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More than 30 of the richest Norwegians have fled to Switzerland and other countries over the past year as business leaders voice concerns over the wealth taxes levied by the centre-left government in Oslo.

Of course, unless we know how many millionaires and billionaires there are, that number doesn't tell us very much.



At the heart of the debate is Norway’s wealth tax which is levied on all net fortunes greater than NKr1.7mn ($173,000) at a rate of 1.1 per cent for the richest.

...

For entrepreneurs such as Haga, (the 31-year-old co-founder of $1bn-valued cryptocurrency data business Dune )most of whose wealth is tied up in his company, the structure of the tax can lead them to take out big dividends or even sell part of the business. Yet because Dune is lossmaking but growing fast, he had no ability to arrange a dividend and does not want to sell a stake. “I either have to take money out of the company or move,” said Haga, who feared that his next tax bill would be several times his disposable income.
 
It seems a bit odd to have a wealth tax in a country with such huge national wealth due to their oil fund.

But maybe that is why they have such huge national wealth, because they raise enough tax each year to run the country.

Brendan
 

Wealth taxes​

Individuals pay both municipal wealth tax and state wealth tax.

The municipal wealth tax rate is 0.7% and is calculated based on assets exceeding a net capital tax basis of NOK 1.7 million for single/not married taxpayers and NOK 3.4 million for married couples.

The state wealth tax rate is 0.25% and is calculated based on assets exceeding a net capital tax basis of NOK 1.7 million for single/not married taxpayers and NOK 3.4 million for married couples. For 2022, a new step for the state rate is introduced. For net wealth in excess of NOK 20 million (NOK 40 million for married couples), the rate is 0.4%.

Thus, the maximum wealth tax rate is 1.1%.

​

 
Ah, you would have to look at the full picture. From various sites:

Many business owners with significant assets pay themselves little or no salary, and therefore avoid any income tax. The wealth tax helps ensure that the wealthiest people in society still contribute.

Inheritance, estate, and gift taxes​

Inheritance and gift tax was removed as of 1 January 2014.
 
You eventually got there ;-) And they could not have come to Switzerland unless their income is derived from non economic activities such as royalty payments etc. Residency is a local community decision not a federal government one, it usually requires the person to make very substantial annual "voluntary" donations to the community, otherwise the permit gets pulled. It makes a very big difference to the local tax rates if you can get a few of these people living in the community, likewise the European HQ of an MNC.
 
Brendan Burgess said:
Many business owners with significant assets pay themselves little or no salary, and therefore avoid any income tax. The wealth tax helps ensure that the wealthiest people in society still contribute.

Inheritance, estate, and gift taxes​

Inheritance and gift tax was removed as of 1 January 2014
Click to expand...
You can tax wealth on a recurrent basis (Norway) or at time of transfer (Ireland).

They are both wealth taxes.
 
NoRegretsCoyote said:
You can tax wealth on a recurrent basis (Norway) or at time of transfer (Ireland).

They are both wealth taxes.
Click to expand...
Yea, but one taxes the wealthy and the other taxes those who are about to become wealthy. One is stable and recurring, the other isn't.
 
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