Inheritance and class structure: an analysis using aggregated data provided by the Brazilian Revenue Service

Abstract

This paper aims at identifying the importance of inheritance rights for the Brazilian class structure, having as hypothesis that inheritance is fundamental for the stability of the present structure. Its method consists in estimating the share of private wealth stemming from inheritance by each income bracket, based on aggregated taxpayer data provided by the Brazilian Revenue Service, through three calculation methodologies outlined by Alvaredo, Garbinti and Piketty, then using the sociological category of class to analyze the results. The results confirm in great measure the hypothesis, as inheritance rights appear to be structural to the Brazilian property-owning class. It seems, therefore, likely that increasing inheritance taxation could be an effective way of redistributing wealth in Brazil.