Hostname: page-component-669899f699-qzcqf Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-04-27T03:50:02.705Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

A Paradox of Japanese Taxation: Analyzing the Furusato Nozei Tax System

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 March 2025

Anthony Rausch
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

This article introduces the Japanese Furusato Nozei Tax System, whereby citizens can designate part of their tax burden to be transferred to as a financial contribution to a prefecture or municipality of their choice, thereby creating an alternative means of taxation. Given that the Furusato Nozei System is gaining widespread popularity, this paper investigates some of its inherent contradictions, its rationale, history and certain paradoxical features of this controversial tax system.

Keywords

TaxationParadoxEqualityRegionsCitizenship
Type
Research Article
Information
Asia-Pacific Journal , Volume 15 , Issue 11 , June 2017 , e1
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BYCreative Common License - NCCreative Common License - ND
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is unaltered and is properly cited. The written permission of Cambridge University Press must be obtained for commercial re-use or in order to create a derivative work.
Copyright
Copyright © The Authors 2017

References

Alesina, A. & Angeletos, G.M. (n.d.) Fairness and Redistribution, American Economic Review 95 (4), 960–980, on-line document, scholar.harvard.edu/alesina/files/fairness_and_redistribution.pdf.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ballas, D., Dorling, D., Nakaya, T., Tunstall, H. & Hanaoka, K. (2013) Income Inequalities in Japan and the UK: A Comparative Study of Two Island Economies, Social Policy and Society, on-line document, http://journals.cambridge.org/abstract_S1474746413000043.Google Scholar
Goodrich, B. (n.d.) ‘A Non-Meltzer-Richard Model of Redistribution’, on-line document.Google Scholar
NHK Closeup Gendai (2015) print version: here.Google Scholar
Ihori, T. & Yang, C.C. (2008) Tax Competition, Public Good Provision, and Income Redistribution, Asia-Pacific Journal of Accounting & Economics, 15, 277–290.Google Scholar
Kaneko, H. (2009) The Japanese Income Tax System and the Disparity of Income and wealth Among People in Japan. Proceedings from the 2009 Sho Sato Conference on Tax Law.Google Scholar
Kessing, S. G., Lipatov, V. & Zoubek, J. M. (2015) ‘Optimal Taxation under Regional Inequality’, on-line document.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shimbun, Mainichi. (2017) Hometown tax used to cover costs of anti-nuclear plant lawsuit, April 12, 2017.Google Scholar
Meltzer, A. H. & Richard, S. F. (1981) A Rational Theory on the Size of Government, The Journal of Political Economy, 89 (5); 914–927.Google Scholar
Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication (n.d. a) Furusato Nozei Portal Site, here.Google Scholar
Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication (n.d. b), here.Google Scholar
Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication (n. d. c), here.Google Scholar
Ohtake, F. & Tomioka, J. (2004) Who Supports Redistribution? The Japan Economics Review, 55 (4), on-line document.Google Scholar
Prasad, N. (2008) Policies for Redistribution: The Use of Taxes and Social Transfers, Discussion Paper Series 194, International Institute for Labour Studies.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rausch, A. (2015) Regional Revitalization as Culture, Identity and Citizenship: Promise, Peril and Shared Sacrifice for Shared Investment, Japanese Studies Association of Canada (2015) Conference Proceedings “Culture, Identity and Citizenship”; 55–67.Google Scholar
Shigeki, M. (2017) A Mixed Grade for Japan's New Tax Reform Plan, on-line document, http://www.nippon.com/en/simpleview/?post_id=3334.Google Scholar
Tay, S. (2015) Who Supports Distribution? Subjective Income Inequality in Japan and China, Economic and Political Studies, on-line document, http://blog.chinadaily.com.cn/blog-1040969-30230.html.Google Scholar
Tokyo Metropolitan Government (n.d.) Tokyo's Financial System: Financial Structure of Local Governments in Japan.Google Scholar
TRUSTBANK (n.d. a) Furusato Choice, here.Google Scholar
TRUSTBANK (n.d. b) Furusato Nozei Products Ranking page site, here.Google Scholar
Wilkinson, R. and Pickett, K. (2009) The Spirit Level: Why Equality is Better for Everyone, London: Allen Lane.Google Scholar
Yabe, T. (2017) ‘Furusato Nozei’ ha Tokyo ikkyoku shuchu wo zesei, chiho wo kasseika shiteirunoka? Todofuken-shichoson shushi deeta to zaiseryoku tono kankei kara kangaeru, proceedings of the Chiiki Shakai Gakkai 42nd Conference.Google Scholar