Till Taxes Keep Us Apart? The Impact of the Marriage Tax on the Marriage Rate
Journal
CESifo Working Paper
Type
journal article
Date Issued
2022-05-09
Author(s)
Abstract
Married couples often face a different tax burden than cohabitating couples with the same income. I study the effect of joint income taxation of married couples on the marriage rate in Switzerland, where tax differentials between married and cohabitating couples vary considerably across cantons. I construct a dataset containing sociodemographic and -economic variables on every individual living in Switzerland, and use household-level information to identify cohabitating couples. Using a simulated instrumental variable approach, I find a negative impact of joint income taxation on the marriage rate for couples married between 2012 and 2019. The effect is driven by households without children and from the lower end of the income distribution.
Language
English
HSG Classification
contribution to scientific community
HSG Profile Area
SEPS - Economic Policy
Refereed
No
Number
9747
Subject(s)
Eprints ID
268435
File(s)![Thumbnail Image]()
open.access
Name
CESifo_WP_Myohl.pdf
Size
1.65 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
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