691 B
691 B
Capitation Tax
Definition
A tax levied on individuals regardless of their wealth or income, typically assessed according to rank or supposed fortune, which tends to be arbitrary and unequal in its burden on different social classes.
Source Chapter
Book V, Chapter 2
Context
Smith criticizes capitation taxes as being either arbitrary when proportioned to fortune or unequal when proportioned to rank, and discusses how such taxes have been implemented in various countries with different degrees of severity.
Economic Domain
General Theory