Low-Tax Countries Lead The World

by Jeremy Hetherington-Gore, Tax-News.com, London

06 September 2007

The CIA has recently updated its list of countries ranked by Gross Domestic Product, using figures from 2006, 2005 or 2004, with Luxembourg in the lead, and no fewer than thirteen out of the top twenty countries being low-tax jurisdictions.

Commenting on the list, Dan Mitchell of the Centre for Freedom and Prosperity points out that: "In an ideal world, other nations would emulate the so-called tax havens. Instead, high-tax nations persecute these jurisdictions as part of an effort to create an OPEC for politicians."

Here are the top 20:

• 1 Luxembourg $ 71,400;
• 2 Bermuda $ 69,900;
• 3 Jersey $ 57,000;
• 4 Equatorial Guinea $ 50,200;
• 5 United Arab Emirates $ 49,700;
• 6 Norway $ 46,300;
• 7 Guernsey $ 44,600;
• 8 Ireland $ 44,500;
• 9 United States $ 44,000;
• 10 Cayman Islands $ 43,800;
• 11 Andorra $ 38,800;
• 12 British Virgin Islands $ 38,500;
• 13 Iceland $ 38,000;
• 14 Hong Kong $ 37,300;
• 15 Denmark $ 37,000;
• 16 Canada $ 35,600;
• 17 Isle of Man $ 35,000;
• 18 Austria $ 34,600;
• 19 San Marino $ 34,100;
• 20 Switzerland $ 34,000.

A critic might point out that the populations of the 13 leading tax havens all added together wouldn't fill up New York City; but that doesn't dilute the message.

And where are the 19th century's leading nations: Great Britain, France and Germany? Japan is also a surprise exclusion.

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