Yes, but it's smaller at the point of sale since it's collected at each stage along the way. The Fair Tax is a one-time tax at the point of sale and is therefore large.
“Yes, but it’s smaller at the point of sale since it’s collected at each stage along the way. The Fair Tax is a one-time tax at the point of sale and is therefore large.”
A VAT taxes consumption, just as the FT does. Because it taxes at each step in the production chain, it does break up collection into smaller increments, as you stated. It does so at the cost of greater complexity and higher transaction volumes, however.
Another key difference is that most VATs are hidden from consumers at the levels prior to the final one. IOW, if there are 6 levels in the production chain, the end using consumer only sees (in many cases) only the taxes at the final level.
Therefore, the FT has advantages of simplicity and transparency vis a vis a VAT.
Both do have the major advantages over the income tax of being border adjustable. In a world where globalization is the biggest transformational change taking place, that is a very significant distinguishing characteristic.