Inter-American Limits on Taxing Powers and the Possibility of Reflex Protection of Taxpayers’ Human Rights

Abstract

This article aims to examine whether taxpayers are protected by limits on the state’s power to tax within the Inter-American System for the Protection of Human Rights (SIPDH). If the answer is negative, it will analyze whether this limitation can be achieved reflexively. The article will investigate the relationship between human rights and taxation, as well as the connection between SIPDH and the protection of taxpayers. Furthermore, It will also explore the possibility of indirectly protecting taxpayers within the SIPDH through the examination of its instruments and jurisprudence from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and the expressions used by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. Identifying these limits will enable a better understanding of the principles that should guide taxation and their proper application. It will also empower taxpayers to seek protection for their rights from the IACHR and the IACtHR.