What type of tax increases proportionally with an individual's income?

A progressive tax increases proportionally with an individual's income because it is designed so that higher earners pay a larger percentage of their income in taxes compared to lower earners. This system aims to reduce income inequality by ensuring that those with a greater ability to pay contribute more to the funding of public services and infrastructure. In a progressive tax structure, as a person's income increases, they move into higher tax brackets which impose higher tax rates on the additional income earned.

This contrasts with other tax types such as regressive taxes, which take a larger percentage from low-income earners than from high-income earners, resulting in a disproportionate burden on those less able to pay. A flat tax applies a single tax rate to all levels of income, meaning that every individual pays the same percentage regardless of their income level, which does not adjust according to income disparity. Capital gains tax specifically refers to the tax on profits from the sale of assets or investments, and while it may have its own rules, it does not describe a generalized method of taxation based on income levels.