Salt tax

A salt tax was a tax levied directly on salt, usually proportional to the amount of salt purchased. In ancient times, salt was extremely valuable as a preservant. Words such as are derived from the same root as salt and indicate its vitality to civilizations. As an example, ancient "salaries" could literally be quantities of salt.

Due to the scarcity and importance of salt, levying a tax on its commerce was extremely lucrative, but also widely despised and controversial.

Notable examples of salt taxation throughout history include:

In 2014, it is still illegal in certain provinces of China to use salt from a neighbor city.

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