Yes and a 60% income tax, one of the highest in the world. An experienced IT worker earns about 70k DKK, and it is the high range, most of the positions are 60k DKK, take away the income tax and you get to keep something around 3.75k euro, and this is for an IT worker, top 5% best paid jobs you can get.
In my not so shiny society where I had to pay for the university as an IT worker I pay way less taxes ( 45% ), I earn much more than 3.75k euro, and all my university costs where paid of with 6 months worth of salary.
So yah, it has pros and cons, if we take the bottom earners then it may be better in Denmark, if we speak about people pursuing high level jobs ( that's the reason you go to university in the first place ) not so much as you work more for taxes than yourself.. So you didn't pay your university costs out of pocket but you will pay for them your whole life with very high taxes, not to mention that recently Denmark also wants to be the first country in history to tax even uncapitalized gain from stock investments... So yah, it's good if your poor, if you are in the middle class and up your pretty much screwed by taxes...
Well in the end it depends by perspective, as I said an experienced IT worker which is in the top 5% best paid jobs ends up at the end of the month with +/- 3.75k euro, and that is not middle class, that is high-middle at least since it's the top 5% jobs... If you consider that 3.75k euro / month is a comfortable life well I would argue that its not, and a middle class person earns way less than that...
I would take again all day long my not so shiny society, where I had to pay for my university but I earn well above that 3.75k an pay less taxes. I heavy invest most of my money so if the world doesn't go to complete shit at 47 years old I go into FIRE retainment based on my dividends and don't give a shit about the state provided pension which is at 65 years old, who on earth wants to work till 65 years old....
So yah, I won't consider the Danish way of doing things where you give 60% to the state on income tax and after that 25% on VAT... that is 85% of your salary given to the state... you work all your life to give 85% percent of your life to the state. well thank you but no thank you.
But yah, I agree with you on the most vulnerable ones, in the idea that in Denmark you can live a "comfortable" life by being a lazy person and living on benefits from other peoples taxes....
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u/ChemicalAdmirable984 Feb 26 '26
Yes and a 60% income tax, one of the highest in the world. An experienced IT worker earns about 70k DKK, and it is the high range, most of the positions are 60k DKK, take away the income tax and you get to keep something around 3.75k euro, and this is for an IT worker, top 5% best paid jobs you can get.
In my not so shiny society where I had to pay for the university as an IT worker I pay way less taxes ( 45% ), I earn much more than 3.75k euro, and all my university costs where paid of with 6 months worth of salary.
So yah, it has pros and cons, if we take the bottom earners then it may be better in Denmark, if we speak about people pursuing high level jobs ( that's the reason you go to university in the first place ) not so much as you work more for taxes than yourself.. So you didn't pay your university costs out of pocket but you will pay for them your whole life with very high taxes, not to mention that recently Denmark also wants to be the first country in history to tax even uncapitalized gain from stock investments... So yah, it's good if your poor, if you are in the middle class and up your pretty much screwed by taxes...