There isn't one single "highest taxpayer in the world" due to varying reporting and private wealth, but recent reports highlight individuals like Alex Gerko (algorithmic trader) paying significant sums in the UK and tech billionaires like Jeff Bezos paying over $2 billion in specific years, while countries like Denmark, Finland, and Sweden have among the highest statutory income tax rates for citizens. The highest individual taxpayer varies annually, often involving billionaires paying massive amounts, but the countries with the highest tax rates (like Nordic nations or some European states) are consistently high for residents, notes the World Economic Forum and Tax Foundation.
What country has the highest taxes?* The country that has the highest taxes is the Ivory Coast (60%), according to statistics platform Data Panda's 2025 survey, followed by Finland (56%), Japan (55%), Austria (55%), Denmark (55%), Sweden (52%), Aruba (52%), Belgium (50%), Israel (50%), and Slovenia (50%).
Who is the highest individual taxpayer in the world? As per FY 2021 reports, Jeff Bezos was the highest individual taxpayer in the world by, paying over USD 2.4 billion in taxes.
Mr Gerko, 46, is one of Britain's wealthiest people, with a personal fortune of £12bn last year, according to The Sunday Times Rich List. He is believed to be Britain's biggest single individual taxpayer, contributing £665m in 2023 alone.
Of those Canadians who do file a return (taxable and non-tax- able) almost 87% of the federal income tax is paid by those who earn $50,000 or more; almost 88% of provincial income tax is paid by those who earn $50,000 or more.
The top 10 percent of income earners pay more than 60 percent of all federal taxes and 72 percent of income taxes, shares that have been increasing over time.
In 2022, Canada was ranked 22nd out of the 38 OECD countries in terms of the tax-to-GDP ratio. 1. In this note, the country with the highest level or share is ranked first and the country with the lowest level or share is ranked 38th.
For a $70,000 income in Canada (using 2025 rates), you'll pay roughly $13,000 to $20,000 in total taxes (federal, provincial, CPP, EI), depending on your province, resulting in a take-home pay around $50,000-$59,000, with federal tax around 14.5% or 20.5% depending on the portion, plus provincial tax and deductions like CPP and EI.
The individuals who make up the Forbes 400 list, topped by Tesla CEO Elon Musk with a fortune of $244 billion, paid an average effective tax rate of 24% from 2018 to 2020, compared with a 30% rate for all other U.S. taxpayers, the researchers said in a new paper published in the National Bureau of Economic Research.
In some years, billionaires such as Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and George Soros paid no federal income taxes at all. Billionaires avoid these taxes by taking out special ultra-low-interest loans available only to them and using their assets as collateral.
It is possible to live in Canada and pay less tax than in the UK, as both countries adjust their taxation according to salary. For example, a Canadian resident earning $40,000 would be taxed at 15%, whereas an employee on the equivalent salary in the UK (£23,887.22) would be taxed 20%.
Among the countries with the lowest tax rates in the world are Malta, Cyprus, Andorra, Montenegro and Singapore. Aside from zero income tax, in Antigua and Barbuda, individuals are also free from paying taxes on wealth, capital gains, and inheritance.
The United States ranked 32nd¹ out of 38 OECD countries in terms of the tax-to-GDP ratio in 2023. In 2023, the United States had a tax-to-GDP ratio of 25.2% compared with the OECD average of 33.9%. In 2022, the United States was ranked 31st out of the 38 OECD countries in terms of the tax-to-GDP ratio.
According to a new study published by the Fraser Institute, in 2024 the average Canadian family (including single people) paid $48,306 in total taxes. Given the average family's total cash income was $114,289 in 2024, this means families paid 42.3 per cent of their incomes in taxes levied by all levels of government.
Unemployment compensation generally is taxable. Inheritances, gifts, cash rebates, alimony payments (for divorce decrees finalized after 2018), child support payments, most healthcare benefits, welfare payments, and money that is reimbursed from qualifying adoptions are deemed nontaxable by the IRS.
If you make $100,000 a year living in the region of Ontario, Canada, you will be taxed $29,986. That means that your net pay will be $70,014 per year, or $5,835 per month.
Highest Property Taxes in Canada
The province with the highest property taxes is Winnipeg, Manitoba, with a property tax rate of 2.64%. However, even though the property taxes are higher, the housing prices are significantly lower than in many other cities and provinces.
Of course, the higher taxes Canadians pay aren't for nothing. Governments use that revenue to provide far more generous family and unemployment benefits than in the US, as well as things like subsidized post-secondary education and government-funded universal health care.