In recent years, the US, UK and Australia have lowered tax rates on high incomes and expanded tax credits and family transfer payments that are withdrawn on the joint income of a couple. These reforms result in significant changes in the structure of marginal and average income tax rates. In...

In the early 1980’s Australia had a highly progressive, individual based income tax and families received support for dependent children in the form of universal family allowances. The introduction of income tests for child support payments based on family income (now in the form of Family Tax...

This paper aims to investigate the effects of the introduction of an active welfare state measure, the Revenu de Solidarité Active (RSA), in France. The RSA replaced the old system of social minima, comprised by RMI and API. By using a micro-macro simulation model we characterize the effects on...

Women married to unemployed men in Britain have lower participation rates than those married to employed men. Possible reasons include unfavourable local labour market conditions affecting both, their both having poor labour market characteristics, and the means testing of benefits, which...

Women married to unemployed men in Britain have lower participation rates than those married to employed men. Possible reasons include (1) husbands and wives fac-ing similar unfavourable local labour market conditions, (2) their both having characteristics which make it more likely that they...

We estimate the effects of the reform of the German Unemployment Insurance that replaced the wage related Unemployment Assistance with an income maintenance program and stronger means testing. We model the tax-benefit system and use the Socio-Economic Panel. We estimate a discrete labour supply...

Many welfare-to-work programs in both North America and Europe are directed at making work pay for the low skilled. This paper identifies two alternative policies that are motivated by this same objective – active labour market programs that involve wage subsidies together with improved job...

We consider the impact of tax credits and income support programs on female education choice, employment, hours and human capital accumulation over the life-cycle. We analyze both the short run incentive effects and the longer run implications of such programs. By allowing for risk aversion and...

This paper examines the impacts of recent Australian welfare to work reforms for low income parents of school-aged children who had been in receipt of Parenting Payment for at least one year. Specifically, the reforms introduced a requirement to engage in at least 15 hours of work-related...

Hungarian family policy focuses on providing generous options to take time off work to look after children. This system not only contributes to Hungary’s low employment rate but encourages long separation from the labour market, has largely failed to significantly influence fertility rates and...