Admission requirements
Prospective students are recommended to have completed at least one year of university education (not necessarily in law or economics). Proficiency in English, both verbal and written, is expected.
Description
Context
The course explains from an economic perspective how individuals and businesses behave in response to (inter)national tax policy, and what this implies for society.
We study the challenges faced by governments in designing their tax systems in line with their policy goals while being constrained by individuals and businesses who intend to reduce their tax liability. Such strategic behavior by individuals has implications for economic activity in general and the income and wealth distribution in particular. We study these contributions from an economic perspective, including welfare economics. Rather than focusing on the details of a specific tax laws, the course introduces key concepts that help you to understand and evaluate the functions and effects of tax systems as a whole. It wethese concepts to analyze the current tax policy debates.
Place within the minor '(inter)national Tax Planning and Policy'
This course is part of the foundational track of the minor ‘(Inter)national tax planning and policy’. The minor investigates the nature and impact of tax planning activities by individuals and companies as well as the policy responses by governments, both in domestic law and through international cooperation. This course introduces students to the economic perspective by studying optimizing behavior of both citizens and businesses, and the strategic behavior of governments in response to this.
Design of the course
The course starts with an introduction of the key economic principles of tax incidence and the welfare loss of taxation. The course then applies these insights to various parts of the tax system. This includes the taxation of income and wealth, and the taxation of businesses. We discuss what tax design implies for income redistribution and what incentives exist for strategic interaction between governments. This includes international cooperation amongst governments, on topics such as profit shifting and environmental policy.
Course objectives
Upon successful completion of the course, students know the basic insights underlying the economic analysis of tax systems and are able to apply this knowledge to a number of recent policy debates.
At the end of this course, students will be able to:
explain the basic principles of the economic analysis of tax systems;
describe how the economic perspective compares to the legal perspective;
explain how individuals and businesses behave in response to tax systems;
explain how governments design tax systems strategically and in cooperation with other governments;
interpret recent policy debates using the economic concepts discussed.
Timetable
Zie MyTimetable.
Mode of instruction
Seminars
Number of (2 hour) seminars: 7
Names of lecturers: dr. H. Vrijburg
Required preparation by students: watch the weblecture, read required literature, prepare the weekly assignment.
Other
Description: 6 or 7 weblectures of approximately 1 hour.
Names of instructors: dr. H. Vrijburg
Required preparation by students: None.
Assessment method
Examination form(s)
- Written exam (100%).
A written exam with open questions is the standard. However, depending on the number of students, we may opt for an oral instead of a written exam.
Areas to be tested within the exam
The exam covers on the required reading (literature) for the course, and the subjects and exercises discussed in the weblectures and the seminars. The most recent information can be found on Brightspace.
Regulation retake passed exams
In this course it is possible to retake an exam that has been passed (cf. art. 4.1.8 and further of the Course and Examination Regulations) on the condition that this course is not part of the minor. Students who have passed the exam may retake the final written assessment (test) of the course if they meet certain requirements. For more information, go to the website > ‘Law’ tab > ‘Retake a passed exam’.
Reading list
Obligatory course materials
Literature:
- The free online textbook CoreEcon
Course information guide:
Reader: TBA. The aim is to provide most articles free of charge via a link on Brightspace.
Registration
Registration for courses and exams takes place via MyStudymap. If you do not have access to MyStudymap (guest students), look here (under the Law-tab) for more information on the registration procedure in your situation.
Contact
Coordinator: dr. H. Vrijburg
Work address: KOG, Steenschuur 25, 2311 ES Leiden. Room A. 257.
Contact information: via the institute below.
Telephone number: via the institute below.
Email: h.vrijburg@law.leidenuniv.nl
Institution/division
Institute: Institute of Tax Law and Economics
Department: Economics
Room number secretary: B2.07
Opening hours: 9:00-17:00
Telephone number secretary: + 31 (0)71-527 7756/1571.
Email: economie@law.leidenuniv.nl