As a child, you’ve probably heard adults talking about taxes and tax payment. As an adult, you’re probably paying taxes as well. But have you ever wondered why you actually pay those taxes or what purpose they serve? As a worker, there’s a part of your salary that is withheld and sent to the government for various purposes. And you’ve probably noticed that taxes also apply to some articles you buy online, at a shop, or even at the mall. What are taxes for? Whom do they profit? Who are those eligible to pay taxes? You will have answers to these questions at the end of this article.
What are taxes used for?
In a country or a state, a certain amount is fixed to be paid to the government. The taxes are collected from the salary you make as a worker. There are parts of the government which include the law-makers, the law enforcers, the judges and many more. These workers are government workers and the taxes paid by civilians are used to pay those workers.
The amount of money to be paid depends on the income made by a civilian. Taxes are applied in various forms not only in your country but also when you’re visiting a foreign country. For example, as a visitor in Mexico, there are some states that apply a tax specially for tourists and they are to be paid in case you’re spending a certain amount of time there. To find out more details about this, check out Visitax.
Must everyone pay taxes?
This may be surprising, but not everyone is required to pay a tax. Actually, there are some parameters to take into account in order to file an income tax return. Generally, your annual income has to exceed a certain threshold in order to be eligible for filing a federal tax return. Other parameters that are considered are related to the type of income, the filling status and the age of the person concerned, but most taxpayers are often eligible to take the standard deduction from their income.