Value
Added
Theft
How governments designed a tax you can’t see – and why that should terrify you
“The art of taxation consists in so plucking the goose as to obtain the largest amount of feathers with the least possible amount of hissing.”
Jean-Baptiste Colbert, Minister of Finances to Louis XIV, 1665
There are reasonable arguments for most taxes.
VAT has none.
Property taxes fund the roads you drive on, the infrastructure that makes your property valuable.
Income taxes fund courts, police, education—the system that makes it profitable to work.
Corporate taxes fund the legal framework that protects businesses.
Each of these taxes has a justification: we created something that benefits you; this is the price.
But VAT? You’re already paying income tax on wages. Businesses already pay corporate tax on profits. Production is already taxed.
So what exactly is VAT taxing that isn’t already taxed?
The answer: nothing new.
VAT is a second tax on the same wages and profits – collected when you spend instead of when you earn, hidden in prices so you don’t notice it’s there.
The problem with VAT
Hidden by Design
VAT was invented in France in 1954 by a finance inspector who understood one thing: visible taxes face resistance. Invisible taxes don’t. Today, 175 countries have adopted it – not because it’s fair, but because citizens can’t see what’s being taken.
The Quiet Theft
Denmark introduced VAT at 10% in 1967. Today: 25%. The Netherlands: 12% to 21%. Germany: 10% to 19%. These increases happened gradually, one or two percentage points at a time. Imagine if income tax rose from 20% to 40% over twenty years. There would be riots. But VAT? Silence.
Not What You Think
You’ve been told VAT is a “consumption tax” – you only pay when you buy. The math tells a different story. VAT actually taxes wages and profits, making it a hidden income tax collected at checkout instead of from your paycheck. The lie is in the name.
What you will discover
This short book (80-100 pages) reveals:
- The mechanism: How VAT really works – and what it actually taxes (spoiler: not just “consumption”)
- The deception: Why you can’t see how much you pay, and why that’s the entire point
- The corruption: How VAT fraud costs EU countries €50 billion annually while honest businesses drown in compliance
- The burden shift: Why rate increases hit the poor immediately but give the wealthy options to adjust
- The warning: For countries without VAT (like the US) – why you should fight to keep it that way
No economics degree required. Just the willingness to see what’s been hidden.
Why you
should care
If you live in a VAT country:Â You deserve to know what you’re actually paying – and why your government designed the system to hide it from you.
If you live in the United States:Â VAT is spreading. Policy experts recommend it. International institutions promote it. Understanding what it really is might be the difference between keeping it out and living under it.
When you can’t see what’s being taken, you can’t judge whether the taking is just.
When you can’t judge whether it’s just, you can’t effectively resist.
That’s not a side effect. That’s the objective.
Already read the book?
This book is free and will always remain free. Share it. Forward it to friends, family, colleagues – anyone who deserves to see what’s being hidden from them.
Get notified about updates and new releases
Support independent research that questions what you’re told to accept
Next book: The Subsidies War – how governments have weaponized taxpayer money since the Venetian republics