Income tax

An income tax is a tax levied on the financial income of persons or of corporations. Various income tax systems exist, ranging from a flat tax to a progressive tax system. A tax levied on the income of companies is often called corporate tax, corporate income tax or corporation tax. Individual income taxes generally tax the total income of the individual (with some deductions permitted), while corporate income taxes often tax net income, the difference between gross receipts and expenses.

History

The income tax was first introduced in Britain by William Pitt the Younger in his budget of December 1798 to pay for weapons and equipment in preparation for the Napoleonic wars. Pitt's new graduated tax began at a levy of 2d in the pound (0.8333%) on incomes over £60 and increased up to a maximum of 2s (10%) on incomes of over £200. Pitt hoped that the new income tax would raise £10 million but actual receipts for 1799 totalled just over £6 million.

Related Topics:
Britain - William Pitt the Younger - December - 1798 - Napoleonic wars - D - Pound - S - 1799

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Income tax was levied under 5 schedules—income not falling within those schedules was not taxed. The schedules were:

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• Schedule A (tax on income from UK land)
• Schedule B (tax on commercial occupation of land)
• Schedule C (tax on income from public securities)
• Schedule D (tax on trading income, income from professions and vocations, interest, overseas income and casual income)
• Schedule E (tax on employment income)

Later a sixth Schedule, Schedule F (tax on UK dividend income) was added.

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Pitt's income tax was levied from 1799 to 1802, when it was abolished by Henry Addington during the Peace of Amiens. Addington had taken over as prime minister in 1801, after Pitt's resignation over Catholic Emancipation. The income tax was reintroduced by Addington in 1803 when hostilities recommenced, but it was again abolished in 1816, one year after the Battle of Waterloo.

Related Topics:
1799 - 1802 - Henry Addington - Peace of Amiens - Prime minister - 1801 - Catholic Emancipation - 1803 - 1816 - Battle of Waterloo

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Finally, income tax was reintroduced in 1842 by Sir Robert Peel. Peel, as a Conservative, had opposed income tax in the 1841 general election, but a growing budget deficit required a new source of funds. The new income tax, based on Addington's model, was imposed on incomes above £150.

Related Topics:
1842 - Robert Peel - Conservative - 1841 - General election

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The income tax has changed over the years. Originally it taxed a person's income regardless of who was beneficially entitled to that income, but now a person only owes tax on income to which he or she is beneficially entitled. Most companies were taken out of the income tax net in 1965 when corporation tax was introduced.

Related Topics:
1965 - Corporation tax

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Also the Schedules under which tax is levied have changed. Schedule B was abolished in 1988, Schedule C in 1996 and Schedule E in 2003, though the Schedular system and Schedules A, D and F still remain.

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Rates peaked in the late 1970s at 99%.

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