There are no state level income taxes in India, afaik. However, the Goods and Services Tax on many items is very high - 28%. So if you earn 100 rupees at the to

There are no state level income taxes in India, afaik. However, the Goods and Services Tax on many items is very high - 28%. So if you earn 100 rupees at the top slab, then you effectively have 58.3 after the income tax, and say you use it to buy some good at the highest GST bracket. You essentially can buy only worth Rs. 41.97. Add to this the fact that there are stiff tariffs for imported goods like iPhone, say for example, 20%. Then it comes down to Rs. 33.57 worth of purchasing power at the international level.