Theoretical and political perspectives on the taxation of pensions, viewed in an international context.

In the last few decades, policy makers and academic researchers have been concerned about the design of pension plans and effective reforms to pension systems. Relatively little attention has been paid to the taxation of pensions and, more broadly, to the provision of retirement income. In this book, experts from different countries explore the interconnection. Their contributions are particularly timely, given recent demographic and political developments, including population aging, which prolongs the time between the payment of contributions and the receipt of benefits, the mobility of capital and labor caused by globalization and the complexity of the taxation of pensions within and between countries. In clarifying these issues, the chapters document the different forms of taxation of pension systems; they use economic theory to explain both qualitative and quantitative observations and discuss whether the observed interaction between taxes and pensions is efficient. The theoretical descriptions are followed by rigorous analyses of pension taxes in specific countries, including Denmark, Sweden, Portugal, Australia, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States.