The Tourism Tax Burden: Evidence from Australia

Abstract

This paper examines the structure, trends and magnitudes of tourism taxes in Australia. Of the two types of broad taxes, general and special, the former accounts for the largest portion of the total tax revenue: excise duties have been the single major contributor, accounting for more than half of the tax revenue in the 1990s. Following the tax reforms in 2000, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) became the major contributor to tax revenue. A comparison of estimated tourism taxes with comparable sectors indicates that the tourism sector overwhelmingly makes a high contribution to national tax revenue. Similarly, while tax revenue from the all sectors has grown over time, an above-average growth in the tourism taxes is evident, particularly since the introduction of the GST. In conclusion, the Australian tourism sector appears to bear a relatively high tax burden and the burden is rising. The GST, an important element of the tax reforms of 2000, seems to have imposed a disproportionately heavy tax burden on the tourism sector.