Is the net income distribution fair or unfair?

STATEC compared the amount of social benefits received by households with the level of their contributions in the form of social contributions, direct taxes and VAT in the last Labor and Social Cohesion report (October 2022).

The net balance of redistribution, represented by the black bar on the graph, shows the difference between social benefits (orange bars) and compulsory contributions (blue bars) ordered by deciles (from the most disadvantaged to the most advantaged).

Households at the distribution center (decile 5, median) withdraw, on average, approximately as much in benefits as they pay in taxes/contributions. Above the median, households pay more than they withdraw from the tax-social system. The least well-off households are net beneficiaries.

Source: STATEC