Detox. No, the ultra-rich in France are not taxed at only 2%

Where does the intox come from?

In a tweet posted on June 6 and seen more than 150,000 times, LFI deputy François Ruffin denounces the low taxation of the wealthiest in France. “0.2% tax for the 37 richest households, 2% for the 370 richest households. New damning note from the@IPPinfo.” Before adding: “40 years of Robin Hood upside down. We need a tax revolution: the small pay small, the big pay big.”

Why is this wrong?

The Institute of Public Policy (IPP), to which the deputy LFI alludes, has indeed just published a study on the taxation of the ultra-rich, and in particular, to take just this example, the 378 wealthiest households in the country, earning an average of 172 million euros per year.

But this 2% taxation of the 378 richest households does not concern taxes in general, only personal income tax. However, for these ultra-rich, the bulk of income does not come from earnings subject to income tax, but from undistributed business profits, subject to corporation tax. Taking this corporate tax into account, the 378 richest households are then taxed, on average, at 28%. A tax rate much lower than what it would have been on the income tax scale (it would amount to 59%), but much higher than the 2% put forward by François Ruffin.