Value Added Tax (VAT)
Also called: VAT, GST, goods and services tax
VAT is charged at each stage of production on the value added, with businesses reclaiming the VAT they paid so only final consumption is taxed. That self-policing chain of invoices makes it far harder to evade than a single-stage sales tax, which is why over 170 countries use it and the US does not. It's regressive on income, which is why most systems zero-rate food and children's clothing.