Employees start working for themselves rather than the Government on Tuesday - two days later than last year, according to low tax campaigners.
The Adam Smith Institute said Tuesday marks Tax Freedom Day - the point in the calendar when Britons stop working for the Treasury and begin to earn for themselves.
The institute's director, Dr Eamonn Butler, said: "Tax Freedom Day, which the Adam Smith Institute has been calculating for 25 years, is the plainest way to show what the tax burden really is.
"That is why the Treasury hates it. They of course want to conceal how much tax we pay, which is why they are so keen on stealth taxes."
The think tank adds levies including VAT, income tax, national insurance, council tax, excise duties, air passenger taxes, fuel and vehicle taxes in its calculations.
Dr Butler blamed the double-dip recession and increased VAT for pushing back the date by 48 hours compared with last year.
He added: "The stark truth is that this burden costs us all 149 days of hard labour every year.
"That's not how long a rich person has to work - it is the time the average person must labour for the tax collectors."
