Yoram Gabay: Israel’s tax burden is higher than the average in OECD countries.
“Tax evasion in Israel is 40-50% higher than in the West. It’s because of crime, the casino, and because of small transactions,” Former Ministry of Finance State Revenue Administration director Yoram Gabay told Radio 99 program "Asakim Ba'avir" ("Business on Air"), hosted by “Globes” editor-in-chief Haggai Golan.
Gabay noted that 42% of taxpayers do not even reach the income tax threshold. He attributes this to “huge disparities in the labor market. A large part of the labor pool has only very modest skills.”
Gabay also noted that Israel’s tax burden of 36.8% was higher than the OECD average. The level is midway between the 48-50% level in northern European countries and the less than 30% level in countries such as the US and Japan.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on October 8, 2007
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