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Solidarity levies are nationally administered taxes on high-emitting industries that mobilize revenue for global public goods such as climate mitigation and adaptation.

Risks addressed

Applications

• Easily implementable: Levies on airline tickets, aviation/private jet fuel, Financial Transaction Taxes , fossil fuels.

• More complex: Levies on maritime shipping, cryptocurrencies, plastics, UHNWIs.

• Technical assistance:
  • Convening bodies: GSLTF, Coalition for Solidarity Levies.
  • Multilaterals: UNCTAD, UNEP, UNDP, OECD, IMF, World Bank, European Commission.
  • Think tanks/research firms: CE Delft, ODI.

Debt sustainability

• No direct effect on debt obligations.
• Indirect effect of potentially lowering future borrowing costs by demonstrating countries’ fiscal responsibility and ability to raise public revenue.

Internal capacity requirements

Minimum	Advanced	Pathway
Tax infrastructure, information collection and management, coalitions of the willing, and identified uses for levy revenues.	Integrated monitoring and verification systems, inter-agency and multinational coordination on standards and frameworks, criteria for international revenue transfers.	Technical assistance, expansion of coalitions and regional cooperation, innovation in levy design and cross-border monitoring.

Regulatory capacity requirements

Minimum	Advanced	Pathway
Levy authority, alignment with existing trade agreements, investment treaties, and tax treaties.	Global governance systems, international negotiation, mechanisms to reduce emissions in taxed industries, and anti-avoidance mechanisms.	Legal consultations, impact assessments, and transparency mechanisms regional tax coordination and enforcement innovation –> precedent of countries’ coalitions.

Pathways to adoption based on financial market readiness

• Shallow: Use simple levy designs applied through existing tax infrastructure for domestic revenue mobilization.
• Emerging: Explore levy designs tailored to prominent industries and with progressive structures.
• Mature: Implement complex levy designs, distribute levy revenues across domestic and developing country needs.

 Pricing considerations

• Market distortions: Balance revenue-raising potential with demand suppression, rising prices in price-elastic sectors.
• Participating countries’ competitiveness: Competitive disadvantages for implementing countries.
• Administrative costs: High setup and collection costs.

Average time to deploy

• Fastest (~1-2 years): Airline tickets, private jet fuel, fossil fuel profit levies.
• Middle (~3-5 years): Jet fuel levies, Financial Transaction Taxes.
• Long (~5-7 years): Levies on maritime shipping, fossil fuel extraction, cryptocurrencies, plastics, UHNWIs.