Italy – 50.49 percent

Although Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has promised to slash taxes, most workers today are forced to concede 50 percent of their salary to treasury. Understandably, the rates mean that domestic consumption is short of what’s required to bring the country’s economy to speed.

UK – 57.90 percent

UK taxpayers enjoy the ever-so-slight advantage of being allowed to take home more of their salary than their Italian counterparts before the top tax rate comes into play; with the 45 percent rate coming into effect at $250,000, as opposed to the much lesser $125,000 in Italy.

France – 58.10 percent

President Hollande’s signature policy of a 75 percent income tax for the country’s highest earners was labelled “unconstitutional” back in 2012. However, the powers that be have since modified it so that today the employer is liable for the upper end rate on salaries that exceed €1m.

Japan – 58.68 percent

Japan’s average personal income tax rate came to an all-time high of 50.84 percent in 2013, and has since stifled the appetite of Japan’s overly cautious consumers further still. The country’s 40 percent upper limit tax rate takes effect on salaries in excess of 18 million yen.

Australia – 59.30 percent

Personal income tax remains the most important source of income for the country’s federal government, and accounts for close to 50 percent of the commonwealth’s revenue. The maximum tax rate comes to 45 percent for salaries that exceed the 180,000 Australian dollar upper limit.

United States – 60.45 percent (based on NY state tax)

Although America’s federal income tax rate is constant, state taxes vary in accordance with a variety of factors – albeit on a very small scale. Tax receipts paid by the country’s top one percent last year accounted for 29.3 percent of federal tax revenues, representing a 1.3 percent uptick on the year previous.

China – 62.05 percent

A far cry from the convoluted mechanisms of old, China’s taxation system since its overhaul in 1994 has been streamlined to keep pace with the country’s socialist market economy. As of 2011, China’s uppermost tax rate has stood at 45 percent for those earning over RMB 80,000.

Brazil – 73.32 percent

At 27.5 percent, Brazil’s uppermost income tax rate falls far short of its more developed G20 counterparts and has done for over a decade. Nonetheless, the country’s tax burden for the majority still stands far and above what most can afford, and some way ahead of the other BRICS nations.

Russia – 87 percent

Apart from a select few exceptions, Russia’s personal income tax rates are essentially flat at 13 percent for residents and 30 percent for non-residents. The common exception to the rule is that with regards to dividend income, which is subject to the lesser rate of nine percent tax.

Saudi Arabia – 96.86 percent

Whereas Saudi Arabia’s corporate tax rate stands as high as 20 percent, personal income tax is non-existent. The zero percent rate means that those residing there are by far the richest of all the G20 nations; in terms of being allowed to take home the largest chunk of their overall salary.