Land Tax Ordinance of 1873

• Date: 1873

The Land Tax Ordinance of 1873 reformed the tax system such that taxes were no longer based on the yield that year, but now on a set valuation of the land; further, taxes were no longer to be paid in kind (in produce), but rather in coin. This dramatically simplified the system and ensured the Meiji government a predictable level of income each year, unaffected by famine or drought.

References

• David Lu, Japan: A Documentary History, M.E. Sharpe (1997), 315.