According to the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), Norway raised the wealth tax in 2021−2024, which increased budget receipts, but some taxpayers left the country.
Changes to tax rates 2021–2024
The effective marginal wealth tax rate on wealth invested in businesses rose from 0.47% to 0.88% in 2021−2024. The maximum nominal rate increased from 0.85% to 1.1%.
Tax exemptions for shares in private and public companies were reduced. The changes applied to wealth invested in business, not only to financial assets.
Emigration of the wealthiest taxpayers
Economist Marius Ring estimates that the tax rise prompted roughly 74−98 affluent individuals to emigrate. That is about 1.78% of the taxpayers with the largest fortunes — the top 0.1% of that group.
The researcher’s calculations show that if these taxpayers had not left, receipts from the wealth tax in 2021−2024 could have increased by approximately 75.1%. After accounting for emigration the increase was about 71.5%, meaning the outflow reduced the potential additional fiscal effect.
Impact on investment and bankruptcies
Ring did not find a statistically significant reduction in investment in Norwegian companies owned by wealth-tax payers in data for 2022−2024. The researcher also found no evidence of an increase in bankruptcies as a result of the reform.
The study assesses the short-term consequences of the reform for 2021−2024 and does not provide a definitive answer on the long-term impact on the economy or revenues.
