Swedish Taxation Since 1862: An Overview

Arbeitspapier

This paper examines the development of taxation in Sweden from 1862 to 2013. The examination covers six key aspects of the Swedish tax system: the taxation of labor income, capital income, consumption, inheritance and gift, wealth and real estate. The importance of these taxes varied greatly over time and Sweden increasingly relied on broad-based taxes (such as income taxes and general consumption taxes) and taxes that were less visible to the public (such as payroll taxes and social security contributions). The tax-to-GDP ratio was initially low and relatively stable, but from the 1930s, the ratio increased sharply for 50 years. Towards the end of the period, the tax-to-GDP ratio declined significantly. The analysis is based on a project conducted at the Research Institute of Industrial Economics (IFN) and provides both a unique length and breadth of the development of a national tax system.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: IFN Working Paper ; No. 1052

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue: General ; State and Local Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue ; Economic History: Government, War, Law, International Relations, and Regulation: Europe: Pre-1913 ; Economic History: Government, War, Law, International Relations, and Regulation: Europe: 1913-
• Subject: Keywords: Income tax ; Wealth tax ; Inheritance and gift tax ; Consumption tax ; Real estate tax ; Tax reforms

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Henrekson, Magnus ; Stenkula, Mikael
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Research Institute of Industrial Economics (IFN)
• (where): Stockholm
• (when): 2015

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/109101
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:41 AM CET