In some OECD countries, transfers are subject to broadly the same tax treatment as wage income (e.g. Nordic countries) while in others (e.g. Japan) they are largely untaxed. Adema and Ladaique (2009) provide estimates for net public social expenditure, i.e. adjusting for the impact of the taxation of social benefits and tax breaks with a social purpose as well as for indirect taxes. This leads to a reassessment of the magnitude of welfare states and to a greater similarity in social expenditure-to-GDP ratios across countries.