http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/56440c30-...z3fyCjdeOa

This is about a year old news. What I found interesting about the article is that just like America they are computing the 1% as those with excess riches in the title however, only 1 in 960 people have the net worth required to be affected by the net worth tax... i.e. the top 0.1%. (>$500,000 net worth)

What surprises me as well is that only 1 in 960 Colombians have a net worth of over $500,000 as of 2014. Based on the current COP valuations if anything that much have decreased this year. (50,000 of 48,000,000)

I would have thought with real estate values the number of people reaching that amount of money would have been higher.

It also suggested that only about 1,000 individuals in the entire country have over $4 million in net worth. Again this surprises me as while $4,000,000 is a substantial number we are talking about 1 in 48,000 people.

(07-15-2015 09:36 AM)lavidaloca Wrote:  http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/56440c30-...z3fyCjdeOa

This is about a year old news. What I found interesting about the article is that just like America they are computing the 1% as those with excess riches in the title however, only 1 in 960 people have the net worth required to be affected by the net worth tax... i.e. the top 0.1%. (>$500,000 net worth)

What surprises me as well is that only 1 in 960 Colombians have a net worth of over $500,000 as of 2014. Based on the current COP valuations if anything that much have decreased this year. (50,000 of 48,000,000)

I would have thought with real estate values the number of people reaching that amount of money would have been higher.

It also suggested that only about 1,000 individuals in the entire country have over $4 million in net worth. Again this surprises me as while $4,000,000 is a substantial number we are talking about 1 in 48,000 people.

Colombian removalists should consider upping their prices for the time it takes 1,000 people to organise their affairs to leave the country. Of course, they can't be too greedy since at that point the top 1% descends to whoever was earning slightly less than $5000,000.

Ain't the Laffer Curve grand?

A populist government will just nationalize the assets of the rich. John Galt is a fantasy.

Hell, money is a fiction.

WIA

A small net worth tax is one of the few taxes that make any sense.

(07-15-2015 09:51 AM)Paracelsus Wrote:  

(07-15-2015 09:36 AM)lavidaloca Wrote:  http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/56440c30-...z3fyCjdeOa

This is about a year old news. What I found interesting about the article is that just like America they are computing the 1% as those with excess riches in the title however, only 1 in 960 people have the net worth required to be affected by the net worth tax... i.e. the top 0.1%. (>$500,000 net worth)

What surprises me as well is that only 1 in 960 Colombians have a net worth of over $500,000 as of 2014. Based on the current COP valuations if anything that much have decreased this year. (50,000 of 48,000,000)

I would have thought with real estate values the number of people reaching that amount of money would have been higher.

It also suggested that only about 1,000 individuals in the entire country have over $4 million in net worth. Again this surprises me as while $4,000,000 is a substantial number we are talking about 1 in 48,000 people.

Colombian removalists should consider upping their prices for the time it takes 1,000 people to organise their affairs to leave the country. Of course, they can't be too greedy since at that point the top 1% descends to whoever was earning slightly less than $5000,000.

Ain't the Laffer Curve grand?

Keep in mind its a tax on NET assets not on earnings which would be taxed seperately. Someone who has $500,000 in net assets would have to hypothetically pay $2,000 in Net Worth tax a year.

The reality is that most of those people with the $500,000 type net worth likely have most of it tied up in their housing no different than in North America. It's almost like an additional property tax for the fringe wealthy.

Personally I'm not a fan as typically people in the top 0.1% of wealth (not earnings) would be at or near retirement age due to compounding. They are already likely to see a large drop in earnings in the near future. Taking away some of their reduced income seems a rather poor proposition to me.

This is different then taxing the extraordinary wealthy i.e. those with $100,000,000+. We are talking about people with 500k net worth which often will derived almost entirely from home ownership.

In a country like Colombia people do not declare their "net assets".

Wouldn't a good number of them be cartel members? Good luck raiding them for tax.

Sales tax (IVA) is the big earner in Colombia. Income tax, not so much.

In any Latin country - including France, Italy and other European nations - people routinely under declare their income taxes.

Amounts for net worth only partially reflect the reality. For example, the family home that was purchased 20 years ago is valued at only a fraction of its true worth. It will have appreciated hugely over time, due to inflation and today's more prosperous Colombia. On paper, and for the purposes of a tax return, it doesn't get marked to market until it's sold.

Government equivalent of a bank robber, "just go where the money is".

This apparently also applies to non-resident individuals with respect to any assets they own in Colombia. Something to keep in mind if you buy property, stocks, or make investments in Colombia. But what about if you are a legal resident but not a citizen of Colombia. Do they include your wealth residing anywhere or just in Colombia?


"Taxpayers subject to the wealth tax include:

Non-resident individuals with respect to assets (wealth) owned directly within Colombia and assets owned indirectly through permanent establishments within Colombia"

http://www.kpmg.com/global/en/issuesandi...eform.aspx