“It’s crazy and very unfair.” how taxes allow men to make money off the backs of women;

Income tax, inheritance, taxation of compensation benefits paid after divorce… Gender inequalities are also hidden in our taxes and social benefits. This is revealed in a recent, very detailed report by the Women’s Economic Liberation Observatory (1), created jointly by the Women’s Foundation and Crédit Municipal de Paris.

It is obvious. the French tax system, as well as social benefits, which are still too often based on the joint income of spouses, mainly disadvantage women, who often have the lowest wages. This forces them to pay more taxes and tends to keep them dependent on their husbands, like women who choose to work part-time to avoid increasing the couple’s taxes.

Hence the bill that will be presented by LREM MP Marie-Pierre Rixen on March 8. A symbolic date, in which he has already presented the first key text on the economic autonomy of women in March 2022. This “Rixain Law” specifically established quotas for female leaders and requires companies with more than 1,000 employees to appoint 10% of top positions, 30% women by 2027, 40% by 2030. A year later, Marie-Pierre Rixane is now tackling tax inequalities.

Miss Figaro. – How is the tax field a strategic field for women?

Marie-Pierre Rixen. – Recognizing women as independent economic entities, autonomous and capable of contributing to the creation of growth implies recognizing them as autonomous fiscal entities. Taxation, which governs our shared lives on a macroeconomic scale, has microeconomic effects on individuals, couples, and the distribution of wealth between women and men. I am not naive. I am aware that our tax code has been built over the years and that the proposals I advocate will not address all gender disparities. But the tax system is an instrument in the service of public choice. The President of the Republic protects the equal society. Therefore, our taxation must be updated according to this goal that we have set ourselves.

In the video, Morgan Miele. “There’s a Thing Called Women and Money”

Starting with the introduction of a personalized tax rate…

It is an irreplaceable measure on a macro- and micro-economic scale. Micro, because we know full well that the standard individualized rate for spouses raises the tax rate of the lowest-earning spouse by six points on average, and lowers the highest-earning spouse by thirteen points. It’s crazy and very unfair. It can be changed, but the regular rate applies by default. Therefore, making the individual rate automatic seems essential to me. Including at the macroeconomic level. because it encourages women to work more, applying the personalized rate would increase their labor market participation rate by 0.6 percentage points, or about 80,000 additional jobs. Therefore, it is critical to our business and our growth.

As for the compensatory allowances subject to income tax.

These benefits are intended to address income inequality during cohabitation and its consequences on separation. Remember, a woman’s income level drops by 22% after divorce, compared to 2% for a man. However, benefits are truly taxable when they are paid twelve months after the judgment or in the form of an annuity. This is when the money is paid within twelve months of the judge’s decision. However, there is no reason for the terms of payment to pierce the amount received by the beneficiary, it is not understandable.

This is also the case with alimony. Why not make such a reform?

They are indeed based on the same logic, but I did not include them in my bill for two reasons. First, child support is paid to the children, not the ex-spouse. Therefore, it does not aim to restore income inequality between spouses. Then, other legislative machines are already addressing the issue of support payments.

In March 2022, Emmanuel Macron promised to overhaul the taxation of cohabiting couples to allow them to “reduce their taxes as if they were married or in a civil partnership”. To the detriment of women, one can add. Doesn’t that contradict your text?

I am not in favor of this at all, because it leads to more divorce, where I support greater individualization of income and tax. On the other hand, I know that several measures in my bill have already attracted the attention of Prime Minister Elizabeth Bourne.