Sweden is infamous for having some of the highest taxes in the world, and yet the country’s tax agency is still one of Sweden’s most trusted institutions.
The Swedish attitude towards tax contrasts sharply with many countries where taxes can be a deeply divisive issue. We investigate what this says about Swedish society and how the popularity of the welfare state might survive growing challenges in the future.
The Swedish tax agency is pretty well respected because they have their shit together. When it’s time for us to do our taxes, we get forms sent home already filled in by the tax agency, and for most people those numbers are accurate and it takes less than a minute for us to do our taxes. Send a text message and you’re done. And usually what happens is you get money back.
Isn’t it like that in a lot of Europe nowadays?
I would hope so but I have no idea, I’ve only done my taxes in Sweden.
In Germany we don’t “need” to do taxes as an employee, but you won’t get anything back if you don’t do them. You can usually just do them in some app, send them to the tax office, get some money back and pay the app a tiny fee for the help.
Then again if you own a house or a company or have any income that isn’t taxed as receiving a salary, you better get a tax consultant and those can be pricey.
It’s pretty much the same in France. People will grumble a lot, obviously (because France, and taxes), but it’s a very simple process for the majority.
Unless you’re one of the happy few that has a lot of varied investments. In which case you’ll have to fill in extra forms. Although your banks will typically send you a precise list of what goes where.
In Belgium it is even easier.
Taxes are on the internet, they are already filled in, but you can check them if you want to.
If they are correct (as usual), you don’t have to do anything.
It’s a lot like that in Belgium and yet people still complain.
Have you ever heard someone speaking French who didn’t list “complaining about stuff” as their number 1 hobby?
Complain about taxes or the tax agency? Sadly, many people in Sweden are complaining about taxes, but the tax agency is still pretty well respected.
Both. All I have to do is click confirm once a year and I’m done.
Not to mention, their taxes go to social programs and can be seen in use, improving the lives of citizens. In the US, our roads are shit, our infrastructure in general is shit, our social programs are a fuckin joke…our tax money isn’t being used for us. That’s the biggest difference.
Send a text message?
Yes. In your tax papers there’s a verification number that you text to the tax agency via regular SMS. You can also log on to their website or their app. Or call them and enter the verification number. Or sign the papers and send them back in the mail.
If you have no objections to the listed figures, you can simply approve it and be done with it. If you need to add any additional income or special deductions, you add those to the form (usually online) and resubmit.
That sounds amazing. In Switzerland, we can do it over the Internet but we have to go over the hassle of putting in all the numbers the State knows very well already. It takes about an hour to get all the certificates (work, insurance, real estate, bank accounts) together, put it all in, and check it.