Would you civil union me? Civil unions and taxes in France: Did the reform of income taxation raise the rate of civil unions?

This paper looks whether the choice to contract a civil union is motivated by fiscal reasons. Since 1999, in France, different-sex couples can contract either a marriage or a civil union, called a pacs. It is a new legal form of union, more flexible than marriage. The pacs turned to be successful, 30% of new unions in 2007 were pacs. In 2005, the income taxation of pacsed partners changed to benefit more to pacsed couples. This paper investigates the link between the reform of the income taxation and the growing number of pacs by analyzing the impact that should be observed if couples answer was the optimal one. It shows that about 38% of the newly contracted pacs since 2005 can be attributed to the reform. This tends to show that the choice to contract a pacs is determined by short-term views. Then it questions the link between marriage and civil union, the pacs could be either thought as a substitute or a complementary to the marriage.civil union ; marriage ; income taxation ; incentive effect

Would you civil union me?: Taxation and civil unions in France

Although the tax system is not marriage neutral in many countries, it has been found only slightly significant in determining marriage decision (Buffeteau and Echevin, 2003; Alm and Whittington, 1995). This paper tests if the tax system could alter the decision to contract a civil union, which is a less binding marital contract. In France, since 1999, couples can either contract a marriage or a civil union (pacs). I assess the impact of taxation on the decision to contract a pacs using a difference-in-differences evaluation of the 2005 reform of income taxation of newly pacsed couples. As the control group is contaminated by the reform, I propose an original estimation method based on a difference-in-differences-in-differences setting to estimate bounds to the impact of the reform. My results suggest a positive and increasing impact of taxation on pacs rates, but also a change in the timing of pacs indicating that taxation alters the decision to contract a pacs. I find a slightly significant impact of taxation on the decision to break up a pacs

Do bankers prefer married couples?

Are married couples more credit constrained than unmarried households? If the cost of separation increases the risk of default, banks might be willing to lend to stable couples. In presence of incomplete information, marriage could be used as a signal of the quality of the match. This paper investigates the link between marriage and credit constraints. I use matching methods to evaluate the impact of marriage on credit constraints. I find that married couples are more likely to be approved for their loan, but they bear higher costs of credit. The differences between married and unmarried couples can be attributed to selection in the marriage rather than to discrimination against unmarried couples.marriage, credit constraints, signal, matching estimator

Competing marital contracts? The marriage after civil union in France

Large changes in marital trends during the second half of the 20th century raise the question of the reason leading to marriage in Western Europe and in Northern America: declining marriage rates, increase in cohabitation, increasing divorce rates. But the reason to get married can be diverse and can evolve over the life cycle. This paper examines is there is a demand for different marital contracts. In France, since 1999, two types of marital contracts are available: the marriage and the civil union (pacs). This paper investigates the substitution between the two contracts, by analyzing the distribution of the age at first marriage by cohort. It detects some recent changes in the bottom of the distribution of the age at first marriage, indicating a small impact of pacs on marriage. Therefore, it tends to conclude that substitution effects are likely to be very small and that the pacs reveals a demand for different marital contracts.civil union, marriage, substitution, quantile regression

Fertility and mothers’ labor supply: new evidence usingtime-to-conception

We analyze the impact of children on their mothers' labor market outcomes in the UK. We use timeto-conception of the first child as an exogenous variation in the probability of having more children. We find that having more children decreases the propensity to work in long part-time jobs but does not reduce participation for high- and intermediate-skilled mothers. For low skilled women, the impact on participation is large and negative. We show that the selection into having a second child is positive for for low-skilled mothers and negative for high-skilled and intermediate-skilled mothers. Women most attached to the labor market are also those that tend to have only one child among highand intermediate-skilled women. The reverse is true for low-skilled women: those least attached to the labor market are also less likely to have a second child. This appears to be driven by unobserved attributes that negatively affect both labor market outcomes and the likelihood to remain in a relationship with the father of the first child, which in turn negatively affects the probability to have a second chil

Individualisation du patrimoine au sein des couples : quels enjeux pour la fiscalité ?

International audienceNous montrons dans cet article que la manière dont le patrimoine est détenu au sein des couples a profondément évolué au cours de la période 1998-2010, conduisant à une individualisation du patrimoine et à une augmentation des inégalités de patrimoine au sein des couples. Celles-ci accompagnent les changements majeurs dans les modes de vie en couple : généralisation de la cohabitation hors mariage, essor du Pacs comme alternative au mariage et recours plus fréquent à un contrat de mariage, qui ont pour conséquence une séparation du patrimoine au sein des ménages. Nous montrons ensuite que cette tendance à l’individualisation du patrimoine au sein des couples n’a cependant pas été prise en compte dans le système fiscal, qui tend à faire l’hypothèse d’une mise en commun des ressources au sein des ménages. Ce phénomène invite à se questionner sur les principes de justice qui sous-tendent l’imposition du patrimoine des couples, que ce soit à travers les revenus, la détention ou la transmission des patrimoines. La fiscalité actuelle fait preuve d’incohérences dans le traitement fiscal des couples. L’objet de cet article est de documenter ces faits et d’ouvrir des pistes de réflexions

La pauvreté des enfants à la naissance en France. Résultats de l’enquête Elfe

Cet article présente une description multidimensionnelle de la pauvreté des enfants en France, au moment de leur naissance et au cours de leur première année de vie. Plus précisément, il s’appuie sur deux principales mesures de pauvreté : la pauvreté monétaire et la pauvreté en conditions de vie (et de logement). L’approche généralement utilisée pour mesurer la pauvreté des adultes est ainsi appliquée aux jeunes enfants, ce qui permet de prendre en compte leurs besoins spécifiques. Diverses techniques de régression ont été mobilisées afin de mettre en évidence les groupes de population les plus vulnérables à la pauvreté monétaire et à la pauvreté en conditions de vie dans ses différentes dimensions

Plus ou moins mariés: L'évolution du marriage et des régimes matrimoniaux en France

Depuis la fin des années 1980, les modes de vie en couple ont fortement évolué. Le mariage sous un régime de communauté de biens réduite aux acquêts était prépondérant pour les couples formés entre 1980 et 1992, mais cette forme traditionnelle de vie en couple n'est pas la plus commune parmi les couples formés entre 1998 et 2010 en raison du recul du mariage mais aussi, pour les couples mariés, du recours accru au régime matrimonial de la séparation des biens. Cette évolution peut être expliquée de deux façons. D'une part, l'augmentation du risque de divorce peut modifier les comportements des couples, à caractéristiques données de ces couples. D'autre part, ces caractéristiques des couples ont également évolué au cours de la période, qu'il s'agisse de patrimoine, d'inégalités entre conjoints ou de l'offre de travail des femmes. Nous décomposons l'évolution du recours au mariage et à un régime de séparation des biens afin de déterminer quels facteurs semblent expliquer les évolutions des modes de vie en couple. Nous montrons que la baisse du recours au mariage s'explique principalement par une modification des comportements des couples, en particulier du fait que le lien entre patrimoine et mariage s'est atténué au fil des années, alors que la banalisation du divorce a rendu le (re)mariage plus aisé. L'évolution du recours à la séparation de biens s'explique principalement par le changement des caractéristiques des couples, en particulier par l'augmentation du patrimoine des ménages et des inégalités entre conjoints

Competing marital contracts? The marriage after civil union in France

Large changes in marital trends during the second half of the 20th century raise the question of the reason leading to marriage in Western Europe and in Northern America: declining marriage rates, increase in cohabitation, increasing divorce rates. But the reason to get married can be diverse and can evolve over the life cycle. This paper examines is there is a demand for different marital contracts. In France, since 1999, two types of marital contracts are available: the marriage and the civil union (pacs). This paper investigates the substitution between the two contracts, by analyzing the distribution of the age at first marriage by cohort. It detects some recent changes in the bottom of the distribution of the age at first marriage, indicating a small impact of pacs on marriage. Therefore, it tends to conclude that substitution effects are likely to be very small and that the pacs reveals a demand for different marital contracts