Development of Income Taxes in Slovakia and the European Union in the Light of Recent Economic Changes in Europe

Abstract

Political, economic, and social developments in the world have undergone relatively turbulent changes over the last two decades. The European Union has not avoided them either. Naturally, any such change directly or indirectly affects the national economies of individual countries. Governments adapt to the new conditions through measures in the areas of employment, production, taxes, levies, and the like. This paper aims to examine the development of income taxes in Slovakia and other countries of the EU. Personal income tax and corporate income tax are the most significant direct taxes in all Member States in terms of collection volume. Their development varies from one region of Europe to another. Therefore, the idea of greater tax harmonization in the Union regularly runs into the arguments of countries in favor of maintaining tax competition. The paper seeks the similarity of individual tax systems and suggests a possible procedure in their further convergence.

Keywords

• tax
• tax system
• direct taxes
• personal income tax
• corporate income tax
• tax base
• tax rate
• tax harmonization
• income taxes
• clusters