Contemporary Challenges for Democracy from a Transnational Taxpayer Perspective

The core of this paper is premised on the idea that international tax competition, in combination with prior financial crises and the ongoing erosion of domestic tax bases, has led to a development where individual countries are intentionally designing their legal systems to attract affluent taxpayers who are mobile by choice, such as high-net value- and high-income individuals, while deterring poorer individuals, most often those who are forced to move, for instance asylum seekers and immigrants.



The paper attempts to challenge the common view that law provides stability, certainty and fairness to society and its constituents as this does not presently hold true due to economic globalization, increased taxpayer mobility, and the outdated perception of formal citizenship. National practises of so-called investment citizenships, golden visas, and naturalization citizenships reinforce inequality as they currently provide preferential treatment to affluent taxpayers compared to poorer ones. Prior (legal) commentators have missed out on this interlinking between differing areas of law and how they, when combined, affect not only individuals but also society itself when managing matters such as social diversity and integration of non-citizens. The challenge of some groups being prioritized above others is addressed in this study through some comparative examples of the interlinking between formal citizenship, taxation and access to democratic inclusion and the subsequent effects this interlinking has on equality between differing groups of transnational taxpayers.