I think an ideal system has a marginal tax rate that decreases with income, with an effective tax rate that increases over time. A simplified version of this:

I think an ideal system has a marginal tax rate that decreases with income, with an effective tax rate that increases over time. A simplified version of this: - two tax brackets, 60% tax over all income below 40 000, 40% tax over all income above 40 000. - A deduction from taxable-income for everyone of about 25 000 - Negative income after deductions means you 'pay negative tax', i.e. you get money from the state - All other subsidies to people come in the form of more deductions from taxable income. This is effectively a universal basic income of 15 000. It remains a progressive system, and ensures that taxable income deductions are actually valuable to people short on cash. The numbers obivously need tweaking.