Why dozens of countries tried wealth taxes on the rich — and most gave up

TLDR:

• Republicans briefly considered a millionaires tax before President Trump killed the idea
• More than 45 Democrats have introduced bills to tax fortunes above $50 million, projecting $6.2 trillion in new revenue
• Sen. Bernard Sanders wants to tax the nation’s 938 billionaires 5% annually and send $3,000 checks to working families
• Wealthy residents are already fleeing high-tax states, and a dozen countries have abandoned similar taxes

Did Republicans almost vote for a millionaires tax? Yes — briefly.

GOP leaders considered taxing the wealthy to help offset President Trump’s sweeping tax cuts before Mr. Trump quickly shut it down. Now more than 45 Democrats in Congress are pushing wealth taxes nationally, proposing to raise $6.2 trillion by targeting fortunes above $50 million.

The question is whether the idea works — because in states and countries that have tried it, the wealthy have a habit of simply leaving.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Massachusetts Democrat, called it basic fairness. “While multimillionaires and billionaires are getting richer and richer, families are getting squeezed by a rigged economy,” Ms. Warren said.

Sen. Bernard Sanders, Vermont independent, went further, introducing a 5% annual tax on the nation’s 938 billionaires — with proceeds funding $3,000 direct payments to working families earning $150,000 or less.

“We cannot tolerate 60% of our people living paycheck to paycheck,” Mr. Sanders said.

Top Republican leaders and Mr. Trump rejected the idea, warning wealthy Americans would flee. That fear has precedent. Massachusetts lost a net $4.2 billion in income in 2024, a year after enacting its millionaire surtax. A dozen countries have abandoned similar taxes. And California billionaires — including Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg — are already eyeing Florida ahead of a potential ballot measure there.

Still, a Pew Research poll found 6 in 10 Americans support raising taxes on households earning more than $400,000.

Read more:

• Blue states’ soak-the-rich bug infects Democrats in Congress who now want a federal wealth tax