10/02/25
Why Now Is The Time To Tax The Super-rich Globally
Over the past decades, an assault has been waged on fair taxation. In G20 countries, top income tax rates on the richest earners have fallen roughly by a third, and less than eight cents in every dollar of tax revenue now comes from taxes on wealth.
We were promised that lowering taxes on the richest would lead to economic growth, more jobs and investments. Instead, 50 years of tax cuts for the rich across 18 countries[1] have shown only one clear outcome: they have made the rich even richer.
Inequality has spiraled out of control. The share of income of the top one per cent of earners in G20 countries has increased by 45 per cent over four decades. The richest one per cent globally have amassed $42 trillion in new wealth[2] over the past decade, nearly 34 times more than the entire bottom half of the global population combined.
This is why a new global consensus is emerging — one that finally recognises that inequality has reached dangerous levels, that it threatens economic growth and political stability, worsens the climate crisis, and breaks the social contract. More and more, taxing the super-rich is seen as an obvious solution to start undoing the damage caused by decades of unfair tax policies.
In 2023, close to 300 prominent economists, millionaires and politicians implored the G20 to tax the super-rich[3], and polling suggests that most people — even millionaires themselves[4] — want higher taxes on the richest. This past July, 19 former heads of state and government of G20 and higher-income countries published an open letter[5] calling on current G20 leaders to support a “new global deal to tax the world’s ultra-rich individuals”. They also noted that taxes on the rich “would reduce inequality and raise trillions of dollars necessary for investments in industrial policy and a just transition.
As calls to tax the rich grow louder, political momentum to make it a reality is also gaining strength. In July, the G20 finance ministers of the biggest economies in the world issued an historic declaration[6] committing to “engage cooperatively to ensure that ultra-high-net-worth individuals are effectively taxed,” and warning that “wealth and income inequalities are undermining economic growth and social cohesion and aggravating social vulnerabilities”.
At the same time, more than 100 countries agreed on an outline for a new UN tax convention[7] that highlights the need to address “tax evasion and avoidance by high-net-worth individuals”.
In short, taxing the super-rich is squarely on the global agenda — and it’s about time. With the climate crisis demanding unprecedented investments[8], hunger on the rise[9], and global poverty reduction coming to a grinding halt[10], failing to increase taxes on the richest as their fortunes soar[11] would be not just unwise — it would be downright absurd.
Many countries used to tax the richest (much) more. For example, several OECD members used to have net wealth taxes[12]. In the United States, the top federal income tax rate was 91 per cent between 1951 to 1963, top inheritance tax rates stood at 77 per cent until 1975, and corporate tax rates averaged just over 50 per cent during the 1950s and 1960s.
However, as the G20 tax declaration[13] acknowledges, the ultra-wealthy make it difficult for governments to tax them fairly, given their ability to move easily across borders. While evidence[14] shows that taxes on the rich do not lead to their exodus, it is undeniable that the offshore world offers them ample opportunities to hide their wealth. This is what makes the push to tax the rich by the G20 and the UN so promising, as international collaboration can help close loopholes.
Oxfam supports those calling for ambitious and inclusive action to ensure the wealthy pay what they owe and are taxed enough to start reversing extreme inequality. It is not only fair and long overdue, it is necessary for people and the planet. The global moment to tax the super-rich is now.
[1] Walker, R., & Hicks, R. (2023). Taxing the wealthiest: Rethinking wealth taxes and the G20. Social and Economic Review, 20(2), 539-560. https://academic.oup.com/ser/article/20/2/539/6500315
[2] Oxfam. (2022, October 19). Top 1 percent bags over $40 trillion in new wealth during past decade as taxes on the rich reach historic lows. Oxfam. https://www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/top-1-percent-bags-over-40-trillion-new-wealth-during-past-decade-taxes-rich-reach
[3] Oxfam. (2023, June 15). Millionaires, economists, and eminent politicians implore G20 to tax the super-rich. Oxfam. https://www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/millionaires-economists-and-eminent-politicians-implore-g20-tax-super-rich
[4] Oxfam. (2023, October 5). Nearly three-quarters of millionaires polled in G20 countries support higher taxes on wealth. Oxfam. https://www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/nearly-three-quarters-millionaires-polled-g20-countries-support-higher-taxes-wealth
[5] Oxfam. (2023, September 12). Former heads of state and government call on President Biden and fellow G20 leaders to back tax justice. Oxfam. https://www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/former-heads-state-and-government-call-president-biden-and-fellow-g20-leaders-back
[6] G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors. (2024, February 28). Ministerial declaration. G20. https://www.mof.go.jp/policy/international_policy/convention/g20/MinisterialDeclaration.pdf
[7] United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. (2024, August 15). Chair's proposal draft: Terms of reference. https://financing.desa.un.org/sites/default/files/2024-08/Chair%27s%20proposal%20draft%20ToR_L.4_15%20Aug%202024____.pdf
[8] Oxfam. (2023, May 18). Rich countries overstating the true value of climate finance, $88 billion says Oxfam. Oxfam. https://www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/rich-countries-overstating-true-value-climate-finance-88-billion-says-oxfam
[9] Oxfam. (2024, October 3). Oxfam reaction to UN State of Food Security and Nutrition report 2024. Oxfam. https://www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/oxfam-reaction-un-state-food-security-and-nutrition-report-2024
[10] World Bank. (2024, April 14). The great reversal: Prospects, risks, and policies in International Development Association countries. World Bank. https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2024/04/14/the-great-reversal-prospects-risks-and-policies-in-international-development-association-countries
[11] Oxfam. (2024, February 22). Inequality, Inc. Oxfam. https://www.oxfam.org/en/research/inequality-inc
[12] Oxfam. (2023, November 12). Survival of the richest: How the wealthiest are reshaping the global economy. Oxfam. https://www.oxfam.org/en/research/survival-richest
[14] National Bureau of Economic Research. (2023, December 5). Wage inequality and labor market policy: New trends and findings (NBER Working Paper No. W32153). https://www.nber.org/papers/w32153
Christian Hallum
Christian Hallum co-leads Oxfam’s work on tax justice. Christian has worked with civil society groups across Africa, in Belgium and in his home country, Denmark, to promote tax justice. He has also worked for the Danish tax administration as a compliance analyst.
Christian’s areas of expertise include global corporate taxation, the taxation of extractive industries, progressive domestic revenue mobilization and responsible taxation of the private sector.
