Benefits Received Rule

The benefits received rule isn't really a rule at all. It's more of a idea, an action plan.

The principle states that the amount a person pays in taxes should relate to the amount of benefits they receive from the government. In this theory, the relationship between citizen and government is closer to the relationship between customer and business. The benefits received rule more closely approximates a market model compared to the typical tax systems in play.

Most tax systems among the world's democracies are what's called "progressive" meaning that the size of someone's tax bill increases as income increases. The amount paid is decided by the ability to pay, not by the amount of government services received.