More giving or more givers? The effects of tax incentives on charitable donations in the UK

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Almunia, Miguel; Guceri, Irem; Lockwood, Ben; Scharf, Kimberley
• 署名单位: CUNEF Universidad; University of Oxford; University of Warwick; University of Birmingham
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF PUBLIC ECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0047-2727
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2019.104114
• 发表日期: 2020
• 关键词: Charitable donations; incentive effects of taxation

摘要

This paper estimates the effects of tax incentives on charitable contributions in the UK, using the universe of self-assessment income tax returns between 2005 and 2013. We exploit variation from a large reform in 2010 to estimate intensive- and extensive-margin tax-price elasticities of giving. Using a predicted-tax-rate instrument for the price of giving relative to consumption, we find an intensive-margin elasticity of about -0.2 and an extensive-margin elasticity of -0.1, yielding a total elasticity of about -0.3. To further explore the extensive-margin response, we propose a model with a fixed cost of declaring donations and obtain a structural estimate of that cost of around 47 pound. We also study the welfare effects of tax incentives, extending the theoretical literature to allow for extensive-margin giving and for a fixed cost of declaring donations. Taking into account these factors, there is a case for increasing the subsidy on charitable giving in the UK. (C) 2019 Published by Elsevier B.V.