Stamp duty - which is used by all states and territories as an added financial bonus from insurance premiums - is among the main targets of the Federal Government's future tax system review panel.

And the controversial fire services levy could also be in the panel's sights, with Chairman and Treasury Secretary Ken Henry telling the Australian Economic Forum in Sydney last week that submissions have shown "almost unanimous agreement... that stamp duties are bad". But he says abolishing stamp duties on conveyancing, insurance premiums and other transactions "would result in a loss of revenue for state governments in the order of $20 billion a year".

"This is a significant amount of revenue that would need to be replaced by some other revenue source," Dr Henry said.

Stamp duty on insurance policies is assessed after the premium and the federal GST - ensuring the state or territory government receives the maximum tax take. The panel is assessing how different taxes and transfers measure up against the assessment criteria of fairness, efficiency, simplicity, sustainability and coherence.

"These criteria will enable us to identify taxes which should be levied, taxes that are so irredeemably poor they should be abolished, and taxes that are reformable - the good, the bad and the ugly," he said.