Tax hike adds to woes for low-income households in Japan english.kyodonews.net

Although the Tokyo resident hopes to eventually start working, she said, "I think the tax hike will make it harder for me to become financially independent."
Lawyer Tadashi Inomata of Tax Justice, a civic group calling for a fair tax system, was critical of the intent of Japan's consumption tax hikes.
"Northern European nations have high consumption tax, but as they also provide high levels of social welfare, most people accept the burden," he said.
Following the 2014 tax hike, Japan twice postponed the second round of the two-stage consumption tax increase, originally scheduled in October 2015, due to fears it could dampen consumer spending and hurt the overall economy.
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