Türkiye'de vergi dağılımı adaletsiz haberi

Türkiye'de vergi yükünde son 10 yıllık dönemde fazla bir artış olmazken, vergilerin dağılımındaki dengesizlik dikkat çekiyor. Mahalli idare ve fon paylarını da içeren, ret ve iadelerin ise hariç tutulduğu vergi gelirleri sonrası hesaplanan vergi yükü 10 yıl önce yüzde 17,3 olarak gerçekleşmişti. 2000 yılında yüzde 19,3'e çıkan aynı oran, ekonomik krizin yaşandığı 2001'de yüzde 20,1'e ulaştı. Geçen yıl ise yüzde 17,7 olarak belirlendi. Ekonomik İşbirliği ve Kalkınma Teşkilatı'nın (OECD) hesapladığı vergi yükünde, üye ülkelerin ortalama rakamı yüzde 36,2 düzeylerinde bulunuyor. Bu oran Türkiye'de ise yüzde 32,3 olarak belirleniyor. Buna göre, Türkiye'de vergi yükü değil, vergi yükünün dağılımında dengesizlik görülüyor.

Belirli kesimler hemen hemen hiç vergi ödemezken, çok kazananlar da az vergi ödeyen mükellefler kategorisinde yer alıyor. 2008'e ait Gelir Vergisi beyannameleri de bunu teyit ediyor. Türkiye'de kuyumcular yılda ortalama 2 bin 118, ayakkabı imalatçıları bin 377 lira vergi ödüyor. Bu rakam otelcilerde 2 bin 471, avukatlarda 6 bin 825 lira olarak gerçekleşti. Diş hekimleri bin 737, sanatçılar da 7 bin 670 lira ortalama vergi ödüyor. Buna karşılık ücretlilerin üzerindeki mali yükler giderek artıyor. OECD'de ortalama yüzde 27,1, ABD'de yüzde 18,1 olan bir ücretli üstündeki vergi yükü ülkemizde yüzde 36,5'i buluyor.

Kaynak: ANKARA Anadolu Ajansı / www.zaman.com.tr

Turkish tax burden below OECD average, unfairly distributed

According to official numbers released by the Turkish Finance Ministry, Turkey's tax rate is below the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) average. Unfortunately, the distribution of the tax burden in Turkey is skewed with a much larger tax burden being shouldered by the average income earner.
According to the Finance Ministry, as of the end of 2008 the tax burden in Turkey was 17.7 percent, a number which has changed little in the past decade. Although the figure has fluctuated over the course of the decade, reaching its peak during the 2001 financial crisis with a rate of 20.1 percent and then dropping to its lowest level the following year at 17 percent, this figure was only marginally lower at 17.3 percent in 1999.

But where Turkey's tax burden is problematic is in its distribution; the tax burden for the average income earner is 36.5 percent. In the OECD, the average is 27.1 percent, with countries such as the UK paying an average of 28.3 percent and others such as the US paying only 18.1 percent.

According to Revenues Administration (GİB) officials and experts, what matters is not the tax rate, but rather its distribution: while some income earners pay virtually no taxes, others pay large amounts of tax.

As in most countries, wage earners in Turkey have been saddled with much of the tax burden and those who would normally be considered high income earners have borne relatively little of the burden. According to officials from the Finance Ministry, in developed countries the vast majority of tax revenue is directed towards supporting the welfare state, whereas in developing countries, such as Turkey, tax revenue is primarily required to finance budget deficits.

Tax revenue in 1999 generated a total of TL 18 billion, while this figure climbed to about TL 168.99 billion in 2008 in nominal terms.

The following are some examples of the taxes paid by selected groups of professionals according to figures provided by the GİB: jewelers, TL 2,118; supermarket owners, TL 922; hotel owners, TL 2,471; lawyers, TL 6,825; doctors, TL 7,016; and large contractors, 5,145.